Friday, August 24, 2012

Update on Bapla School Expansion, Burkina Faso

We recently received an update from Dr. Salibo Some concerning the expansion of the secondary school in the town of Diebougou in the Bapla region of southern Burkina Faso.  Dr. Some is the director of the African Sustainable Development Council (ASUDEC), an NGO based in Ougadougou (www.asudec.org).  Shallowford Presbyterian is providing funds to ASUDEC this year to help expand the school from 3 classrooms to 5.  Great progress has been made and they hope to have the classrooms open for the coming school year.  A recent delivery of construction materials was marked by a ceremony attended by various dignitaries and was documented by the ASUDEC regional director, Cyrille Kpoda (see below).  Dr. Some also sent several pictures.


Ceremony of Construction Equipment in CEG Bapla

Report on the event by Cyrille Kpoda,
Coordinateur Régional de ASUDEC
Southwest Region

On Monday, August 13, 2012, equipment and building materials were delivered to the school in Bapla called the CEG Bapla (Collège d’Enseignement Général, or General Learning School, the 4 years before high school).  Delivery of the materials was witnessed by:

            A team led by Hall of Diébougou, the Deputy Mayor of the Municipality of Diébougou
            The Director of CEG Bapla
            The EPA Office CEG (Association des Parents d’Elèves, School Parents’ Association)
            A staff team from ASUDEC
            A representative of CLA and some inhabitants of the village

The ceremony included statements from the Regional Coordinator ASUDEC, the President of the EPA, the Director of the CEG, and finally the Mayor of Diébougou.

The Regional Coordinator of ASUDEC began by thanking the Deputy Mayor for his willingness to attend the ceremony.  He then explained to the audience that the ceremony is part of a plan that ASUDEC has to assist people in meeting the challenge of education and to contribute to the awakening of the people.  He also stated that after the request by the EPA for the construction of three classrooms, ASUDEC sought funding from private donors, including an American church called "Shallowford Church", based in Atlanta, Georgia.  He noted that construction began in April after receiving the first installment of funds from the donor.  He then presented the new batch of materials, and expressed his wish that the classrooms would be ready for the new school year 2012-2013.

The EPA President described in his speech the steps taken by the EPA, in collaboration with the educational team of CEG and ASUDEC, that culminated in the delivery of the first batch of equipment for the construction of 2 classrooms.  The delivery of material is more favorable than a second request to ASUDEC by the EPA for further work.  He thanked ASUDEC and its financial partner in the U.S. for their support for the development of the people.  He also reassured the audience that the provisions have been made to insure that the work will be done so that the rooms can be used for the next day of school.

The Director of CEG then described ​​the evolution of the school and the number of students there. He stated that the current number of students far exceeds the capacity of the school, which explains the overcrowding in the classrooms and contributes to the difficult working conditions for the students as well as faculty.  Thus the EPA has been attempting to find solutions to this situation.  It was a matter of finding support for the construction of three classrooms.  This is how ASUDEC became involved.  Finally, he suggested that before the start of classes, and acceptance of the building, a ceremony should be organized where regional authorities in charge of the education sector, including the Regional Director of Secondary Education and Higher, would be invited.

Finally, the Mayor spoke, first commending ASUDEC for their actions in favor of development in general and more specifically, in the direction of the education of the people.  He also said he was very happy to have been officially informed of the ongoing work at CEG.  Secondly, he stated that he was relieved by the contribution of ASUDEC because the municipal construction budget for the classrooms for CEG Bapla was unavailable.  Due to the limited resources of the municipality, they were unable to fund the classrooms.  He stated that this is a concern of the town which is being addressed.  He embraced the idea of the Director of CEG concerning the ceremony to involve regional authorities, thanking ASUDEC for organizing such an event.  It is with these words that symbolically carried the delivery of equipment to the President and Director of EPA CEG, marking the end of the ceremony at approximately 18:30.

Diébougou August 13, 2012







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