Colonial Presents Stationery to Flood Affected Nabau Primary
Nabau District School, located some 100km off the Tailevu High way, had been badly affected by flood waters in January. The school dwells just in front of the Wainibuka River and was underwater when the river burst its banks in January.
Most of the classrooms and teachers quarters had all been underwater for over a week. The school library also was covered in mud and debris, school stationery was of no use now.
Colonial responded to their plight by donating more than $2,500 worth of stationery some sporting gear; rugby balls and netballs to the 60 year old school. The donation was made on Wednesday 25 March 2009 at a ceremony at the school.
The village and the school are in a remote part of Viti Levu. The main form of communication with people outside of Nabau is one Easytel phone which services the entire Nabau Village.
For most of these children, attending school is a daily challenge, walking across rivers or walking many miles barefoot.
When there is a heavy downpour the children are quickly sent home as the fear of the rising river could affect those who need to cross the same river to get home.
Pervious assistance received were bales of cloth from the Methodist Church and rain coats from Save the Children Fund.
Colonial’s representative Howard Politini said that “Colonial exists because of communities such as these. We strive to bring forth good education to our future leaders, the children of Fiji.”
Colonial representatives were very humbled yesterday when they saw the excitement on the children’s faces, waiting to receive much needed stationery to promote better learning.
The villagers of Nabau were thankful to Colonial and presented a traditional Fijian welcome for the guests. Certainly Colonial played a big part in brightening up the spirits of the children at this adversely affected school.
Head teacher, Mr Robert Tulsi Ram, said “it was very noble of Colonial to personally come and hand the items over to the school. This is a very heart warming moment for the entire school and the surrounding communities.”
The children were overjoyed to receive all the items and couldn’t wait to test out their new rugby balls.
Along with Nabau District School, Sigatoka Methodist Primary has also been a recipient of Colonial’s Educational Assistance programme.
