26 Aug 2018

Walking long distance to access education will soon be a thing of the past for Khwai children thanks to the Gross family who volunteered to construct a primary school in the village.

Khwai village is found on the North bank of the Khwai River in the North West District.

It is situated just outside the North gate of the Moremi Game Reserve, on the Eastern side of the Okavango Delta.

Some children from Khwai are in boarding school at Kareng, some 350km  from their village.

The school is reportedly the brainchild of Maun East Member of Parliament, Mr Konstantinos Markus who approached the Gross family after a concern was raised by residents that their children were under performing because they stayed far from them and others absconded from school.

During his visit to the school, the Vice President, Mr Slumber Tsogwane was impressed to learn that the facility was complete.

The school comprises seven classrooms, administration block, dining hall, ablution blocks and a kitchen.

The school which looks more like a lodge is nicely thatched.

Mr Tsogwane thanked the area MP and the Gross family for the vital role they played in contributing towards the education system.

He said they demonstrated love for Khwai community who were worried about the distance travelled by their children to school noting that “pupils will now enjoy the comfort of staying with their parents and accessing education closer.”

Mr Tsogwane said it took humanity for the Gross family to do what they did.

He said the gesture would remain in the hearts of the community even generation to come since they would have the opportunity to attend the school.

Although the Vice President appreciated that the facility was incomplete without teachers’ accommodation, he made assurance  that efforts would be made to ensure the whole package was delivered.

He promised to take up the issue with the Office of the President to see how they could assist to ensure a fully-fledged school.

Mr Tsogwane urged the North West District Council to take over and see if they could secure funding to assist towards completion of the school.

Giving an overview of the project, the acting council secretary, Mr Gobe Modongo said the project started in 2015 after Mr Markus shared his idea with the donor and entered into partnership.

He said since the village was located in a fragile area, they encountered challenges such as securing land and conducting the Environmental Impact Assessment.

Mr Modongo said initially, the donor wanted four classrooms, dining, administration block and kitchen and the scope changed to add refuse bay and ablution blocks.

He said teachers’ accommodation was pending but they had escalated the issue to the ministry.

The donor, Mr Gross of Okavango Air Rescue said it was a long journey and thanked residents and council for their patience, cooperation and support towards the project.

He said they felt proud to have worked with them and responded positively to their plea. The facility, he said would add value to the pupils’ learning.

For his part, Mr Markus requested relevant authorities to fast track pending issues to ensure the school started operating beginning of next year, adding that all classes from Standard one to seven could be transferred to the new school. ENDS