Rainstorm destroys Manyoro Primary School block •Pushes many pupils out of school

The destruction of a three-unit classroom block at the Manyoro Primary ‘A’ Basic School in the Kassena Nankana Municipality in the Upper East Region, has made many pupils abandon the school.

The damaged classroom block, which was constructed in 1959 by the community members, accommodates classes One, Two and Three with a total population of more than 300 pupils.

As a result of the current state of the classroom block, many pupils are reluctant to go to school, a development which caused great worry to teachers and parents.

The town is a border community which shares a boundary with Burkina Faso and so many Burkinabe school-age children cross the border to acquire basic education at the Manyoro Basic School.

The situation has resulted in overpopulation with its attendant consequences of overcrowding in all the classrooms.

How it happened

On June 10, 2024, a severe rainstorm that hit the town in the night ripped off the entire roof of the classroom block and an office.

The following day, the community members, teachers and pupils were confronted with the state of the block, compelling the authorities to ask the pupils to return home.

Due to the lack of an alternative place to be used to teach the affected pupils, they are currently taught orally. However, if there are practical lessons requiring the use of a board, they are sent back to sit in the affected classroom block to go through such lessons.

With the onset of the rains, many parents stopped their children from going to school to protect them from any incidents.

Urgent assistance

Information gathered by the Daily Graphic indicated that after the incident occurred, the management of the school together with the assembly member for the area, and the chiefs and elders made requests to the municipal assembly for support but to no avail.

As a result of the challenge, 50 pupils out of a total of more than 300 pupils attend school daily.

With the onset of the rains if the affected classrooms are not fixed, they will be at the mercy of the weather, which would further deteriorate the building, as well as attendance.

Sharing his concerns about the state of the classroom block, the Assembly member for the area, Kingsley Kanwi, said the school pupils were going through difficult times in their quest to acquire basic education.

He stated that the state of the classroom block should be treated as an emergency by the government to prevent further damage to the block, saying “It is unacceptable for the pupils to be studying in the open as it would affect teaching and learning.”

“Therefore, I wish to appeal to the government, public-spirited individuals and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to come to the aid of the school to safeguard the future of the pupils”, he said.

Overpopulation

Speaking on behalf of the Paramount Chief of the Manyoro Traditional Area, Pe Dr Pwakweah Atudiwe Atupare Manchi III, Clement Atupare pointed out that the school was already confronted with the challenge of overpopulation due to its central location.

He said the age-old problem had been compounded due to the destruction of the classroom block by the rainstorm, stressing that “there is the need for all stakeholders to take immediate steps to solve the problem before the commencement of the next academic year.”

He indicated that the community members tried to solicit urgent support for the school but unfortunately, they were unable to receive the needed assistance.

Meanwhile, engineers from the municipal assembly have already done an assessment of the state of the classroom block for the next line of action to be taken.

The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Joseph Adongo, said the assembly could not give a timeline for fixing the problem as they were in the process of mobilising resources to reroof the classroom block.

Writer’s email: gilbert.agbey@graphic.com.gh