Parents go so far as to offer their land for better access to education for their children

With the sole assurance that education remains the best legacy for these 4 children, Mara Justin, parent of schoolchildren and mayor of the Commune of Bevitika in the South of Madagascar offered his land free of charge to house the extension of the college. The surface will allow children to benefit from a courtyard to play and have fun while the building to be built will include two classrooms and a multipurpose room for demonstrations of scientific subjects.

“The team of UNICEF and the Ministry of National Education did not need to argue for long to convince me to hand over my land that is adjacent to the current establishment. Here, conditions are precarious and I strongly believe that access to education is the best way out of this situation,” he said.

A two-room building currently houses the four levels of the general education college, which have a total of 95 students, 47 boys and 48 girls. “As you can see, the two classrooms are still separated by a canvas so that everyone can access school and complete school programme. Obviously, we can hear sound from one classroom in another but it’s better than nothing,” Mara Justin says with a sigh.

UNICEF, with the support of the Japanese National Committee, will ensure the completion of the new construction in order to ensure access to education and quality learning for all children.   The first infrastructure has already been initiated by UNICEF and the education authorities to provide children with an adequate school environment. With the new infrastructure, the college will increase its capacity and 145 more teenagers are expected to join the school.