News from CORAfrica

Dispatches

by Fr. Peter Abue

November 2007

Dear Friends of CORAfrica,

Greetings from Nigeria!

A
new lease of life began for 73 infant children in the Ipong -Obudu
community of Cross River State, Nigeria. These were the newly admitted
children of Little Flower Nursery Primary School located in
Kakum village. The new school is to be run by the Parish community
under the CORAfrica educational program. The school was formally opened
on the 2nd of October with a 7-member staff headed by Mr. Clement Uzor,
a seasoned school administrator who has spent the past 25 years heading
schools in different parts of the country. Other faculty include: Cora
Akomaye Adie (Kindergarten), Philomena Atuaka (Nursery 1) Christiana
Amokeye (Nursery II) and Martina Agio (Transition Class). Also,
Margaret Ushie and Lydia Igben are designated as nannies and
non-teaching staff members. So far, this 7-member team has shown itself
as a formidable force that hopes to train the newly admitted infants in
a positive direction. Though the school opens with only four classes in
the Nursery section this October, it is hoped that in the near future,
the Little flower will blossom into a full blown institution
in both Primary and Secondary school sections, with facilities fitted
to enable rural children to enjoy basic education as their privileged
counterparts in urban areas.

Staff members with children at Little Flower Nursery Primary School

As
a kick off for the founding of a Community Education Center (CEC) in
Ipong, CORAfrica has recently negotiated with the Ipong community
members to donate a building for a Nursery Primary School. In a meeting
held in the palace of the clan head of Kakum, Fr. Peter Abue addressed
the community representatives and encouraged them to come together in
partnership with the Parish to initiate this educational facility for
its rural children under the CORAfrica programs. The clan head of
Kakum, Chief Joseph Atuaka, together with other members of his cabinet,
jointly welcomed the idea of this new school in the community. They
unanimously voted to donate the newly erected 4-Classroom block
originally built by the European Union for the community under the MPP6
Program (Micro projects programme for 6 States) in Nigeria. In a formal
ceremony held on October 2nd, 2007, the keys of the classroom block
were formally handed over to head teacher Mr. Uzor, who promised
together with his team to bring quality and community-based education
to the children under their care.

Clan Head handing over keys to the headmaster

According
to a Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) conducted recently in the
area, about 80% of Children live in rural villages, and so it is
becoming increasingly reasonable to encourage quality and model
schooling for this category. CORAfrica’s vision is not only to found
such schools and equip them for rural children but also build support
systems such as health clinics, agricultural stations, good sources of
water supply and viable economic facilities that will enable parents to
provide the means to educate their children. Such a system would be
modeled after the St. Joseph school system, already existing in the
village of Idum-Mbube in Ogoja Local Government Area. It is expected
that the population of the school will grow from the present 73
children, and the benefits of the new school will be reaped by
surrounding villages such as Okambi, Igwo, Bebuagbong, Bebuatsuan,
Bebuabie, Begiaba, Kutiang and Akorshe Oweh. In the surrounding
villages of Ipong, for example, the majority of schools have been
existing in the past, with most of them founded by private individuals
as business ventures. With very little attention paid to those at the
receiving end of educational programs, most schools owned by government
are not well equipped to cater for the holistic upbringing of children.
The only hope lies in creative initiatives by creditable agencies such
as churches, sometimes in collaboration with governments.

Children playing outside the new school building

Education
of children has fared rather poorly in rural villages of developing
countries in general. According to a World Bank report, the majority of
school children who live in rural areas drop out of school due to the
lack of support facilities to attract them towards staying. Also, the
rate of transfer from primary to secondary school is less for rural
children than their urban counterparts. In general, less than 5% of
children who completed secondary education from rural villages go on to
college, while a whopping majority of youths who are opportune to
attain some kind of education fail to establish sustainable ventures in
the villages that will enable them stay on. Educational initiatives by
CORAfrica hope to turn these situations around for upcoming
generations. In collaboration with willing partners from the outside
world, Little Flower Nursery Primary School hopes to bring
hope to the aspiration of rural children in the Ipong Obudu community
of Cross River State, thanks to the CORAfrica initiative.

Fr. Peter Obele Abue