Almost one year to the day that the new classrooms and office were handed over to the community in the village of Sogum in Cameroon’s Far North Region, a team from the SHUMAS office in Maroua visited to assess the impact of the project.  We are pleased to say that the news is very good indeed.

Pupil enrolment this year has increased from 301 to 320 and there are almost as many girls attending school as there are boys.  The number of teachers has increased from 5 to 7, despite their pay being low and infrequent.  This is an extremely poor village with only 14% of families currently able to afford to pay the PTA fees, which are used to pay the teachers.  Nonetheless, a women’s group has been established in the past year with the aim of maintaining the new building and supporting the school generally.  There has also been an increase in the number of children who now possess a birth certificate which allows them to take the national examinations. These are very expensive items to purchase retrospectively and, in the past, many parents didn’t think they were worth investing in because so few children managed to stay in school long enough to finish primary education.

The Head Teacher noted that the new classroom furniture has meant that the children’s work has improved and they are better able to concentrate.  Exam results reflect this, with 90% of children passing the Common Entrance Exam this year in comparison to 40% last year.  The Head also reported that 3 of this year’s pupils were amongst the top five pupils graduating to secondary school in September.