What are we up against?

The picture below was taken at Kwawangare Primary School, one of the poorly-resourced schools in our programme, in February 2015. It illustrates, in a poignant way, the environment in which we are working. Lots of optimism expressed in the “Strengths” and “Opportunities” boxes and the sort of nightmare problems impoverished schools in the region face, presented in a matter-of-fact way under “Weaknesses” and “Threats”:

• inadequate teaching staff

• lack of role models in the community

• admissions that have no foundations of pre-school

• inadequate water supply and sanitation facilities

• high number of orphaned pupils

• high number of pupils from single parents

• child abuse by parents/guardians etc.

• insecurity in the neighbourhood

• high level of poverty

• child labour in the neighbourhood leading to truancy