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UK don donates 2m/- desks to primary school
2006-09-19 09:45:02
By Our Correspondent
The Kilimani Primary School in Ukonga has received a donation of 2.2m/-from Professor Elspeth Jones, Dean of the Leslie Silver International Faculty at the Leeds Metropolitan University in UK for the purchase of 50 school desks.
The donation was handed over by Prof Malcolm Shaw also from Leeds University on behalf of Prof Jones who visited Tanzania in 2005 for the first time where she said she was moved by the warmth, friendliness and generosity of the reception she was accorded.
Recently, Prof Jones marked her 50th birthday. Knowing that there are many schools in Tanzania with no desks, she didn’t wish to receive birthday gifts from her wellwishers instead, she asked each of her guest to donate 20 pounds for the purchase of one desk.
The outcome is that UK 900 pounds (about 2m/-) was donated for the purchase of the desks.
”I hope you will see this as a simple act of the people in the UK helping the people of Tanzania directly without the intervention of aid agencies and without the often unnecessary bureaucratic and costly processes associated with such initiatives”, said Prof Shaw.
The handover ceremony held at the school at the weekend was presided over by the Deputy Minister for Infrastructure Development, Dr Milton Mahanga who thanked Prof Jones for her generosity, kindness and love that she has shown to the pupils of Kilimani Primary School.
”Professor Jones’ gesture to this school is a clear testimony of her understanding and sympathy of the poor learning conditions that face pupils and students in Tanzanian schools. We are greatly appreciative of this donation that will enable this school to purchase 50 desks for its pupils”, said Dr Mahanga.
The Deputy Minister said the problem of school facilities in primary schools has greatly worsened following a positive and ambitious government policy of embarking on Primary Education Development Programme (PEDP) some five years ago that require all school age children to eventually enroll in schools.
Dr Mahanga appealed to other well wishers in the UK and elsewhere to continue assisting Tanzania in its endeavours to have a literate population.
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