The Swiss government has donated three classroom blocks and a solar-powered borehole to the Lafia Local Government Education Authority primary school in the Ungwan Galadima 2 community of Nasarawa state, in partnership with a non-governmental group called Global Peace Development.

This is to ensure that the school’s students have access to high-quality education as well as portable water for everyday use.

Executive Director of GPD, Ebruke Esike, said the project, dubbed “Support Education Infrastructure for Improved Child Learning and Development in Nasarawa State,” was a way to combat illiteracy in the state during a handover ceremony of the classroom blocks and borehole to the community on Friday in Lafia.

Esike, who was represented by Joy Tsaku, the State Coordinator of GPD, went on to say that the gesture was part of a conscious effort to improve the learning environment for primary school children in the state.

“We witnessed a supposed learning facility lacking basic amenities as the majority of the pupils sit on bare floor while learning took place because of inadequate classrooms and limited desks. About 113 pupils were using one classroom which could lead to child underdevelopment,” Esike said.

“So we constructed three blocks of classrooms, a solar-powered borehole and five toilets with septic tank which is equipped with hygiene facility. We also provided 45 desks for the pupils and three chairs and tables for the teachers,” he added.

The Executive Director thanked the Swiss Embassy in Nigeria for collaborating with his organization to confront the community’s sufferings by donating funds to the project.

“We sought the assistance of the Embassy of Switzerland in Nigeria to provide basic amenities required for a conducive learning and teaching environment lacking in the school. The project gulped the sum of N10,898,850, out of which N9,232,850 was donated by the Embassy so we are grateful for their support”, he said.

Abdullahi Ibrahim, a representative of the Lafia Local Government Education Authority in Nasarawa, thanked Global Peace Development for the initiative to give back to the community, saying he would make sure the facilities were maintained so that other organizations would be encouraged to bring more social amenities to the community.

He said, “I am very happy with this development. GPD has done well for us by building these classrooms, a borehole, and toilets. I want to also thank the Embassy of Switzerland for supporting them to achieve this feat. We would ensure that the facilities are maintained so that the community can continue to experience rapid growth”.

The district head of Lafia’s Ungwan Galadima 2 community, as well as well-wishers from adjacent communities, were present.