Many people in the Kasigau Corridor view Marasi Primary School as the symbolic center of Maungu, which is the town nearest to our Wildlife Works REDD+ Kasigau Headquarters. Many of our employees, including the Human Resources Manager, Laurian Lenjo, completed their primary education there.
Unfortunately, a visit to this school, started by parents in 1974, revealed crumbling roofs, peeling paint and door-less classrooms. Students who are fortunate enough to obtain a seat during class must sit at unstable desks that are shared with at least four others, while the remaining children sit on the dusty floor.
One of the renovated classrooms. There are two other blocks that still need renovation
Several months ago, the school received critical funding through the sale of carbon credits generated through the Wildlife Works Kasigau REDD+ Project. Using these funds, the school was able to renovate four classrooms and will soon be purchasing desks as well.
Laurian Lenjo, the community relations officer at Wildlife Works, Rukinga, addressing wananchi during the official handover of the renovated classrooms at Marasi Primary School
The renovation included painting, floor reconstruction, and reroofing among other minor improvements. While this is a colossal step towards bringing the school to acceptable standards of learning, there are still areas of the school in extremely poor condition. Additionally, the classrooms are extremely overcrowded, with each one accommodating 65 children or more.
Mary Mbuga, the head of Marasi Primary School addressing pupils during the handover ceremony
The school’s management team, led by Mary Mbuga, is confident that they will continue to benefit from the REDD Project and the sale of carbon credits by furthering improvements on the school infrastructure.
Nick and Gift, two employees who supervised the renovation of the classrooms at Marasi Primary School
Mrs. Mbuga envisions a bright future for the school and says that if possible, she would love to establish boarding facilities so that students are no longer required to make the long trek to and from school on a daily basis.
The block of classrooms at the Marasi Primary School before the renovation
We are optimistic that the future sale of carbon credits in the Kasigau Corridor will enable Mrs. Mbuga and other community leaders to implement their projects to the fullest. We will continue to remain appreciative of the positive impacts carbon credits are bringing to the Kasigau Corridor communities.
