Since 15th January, school children of Nyakabiga Fundamental School, in the center of Bujumbura, do not attend classes. The Ntahangwa River threatens the school premises. In the morning of 16 January, six classes in primary school, i.e. from grade 1 to grade 6, and two kindergarten classes were closed. Only students from Grades 7 to 9 were attending classes while primary school teachers were holding a meeting.
Toilets of Nyakabiga Fundamental School destroyed after the banks of the Ntahangwa River burst
The Headmaster of Nyakabiga Fundamental School, Anonciate Nsabimana says the school management decided to interrupt classes for schoolchildren since the banks of the Ntahangwa River burst, causing toilets destruction in the night of 14 January. She adds that this school has been threatened by the Ntahangwa River for a long time. “This problem is known and the situation has become worse and worse, “says Nsabimana.
She adds that the fissures from the banks of the Ntahangwa River are approaching more and more primary school classes. She explains that students from secondary school continue their studies despite this problem because they are mature enough to cope with the situation. “We cannot let schoolchildren come to school if we do not have toilets. Students from secondary school can manage, “she says adding that the school management asked the authorities of the Pentecost Church located near this school to allow students to use their toilets if need be.
The Headmaster of Nyakabiga Fundamental School says she is holding a meeting with teachers, the Provincial Director of Education in Bujumbura and headmasters of various schools within Nyakabiga Zone, to find an alternative solution so that these schoolchildren can continue to study while waiting for a sustainable solution to stabilize the banks of the Ntahangwa River.
She plans to find places for these schoolchildren in other schools within Nyakabiga Zone.
A mother whose children are studying at Nyakabiga Fundamental School upholds the decision made by the school management to send the schoolchildren home. She shares the idea of seeking other places for schoolchildren. “I was afraid that one day I would receive a sad news that my child fell in the Ntahangwa River while playing,” she says.
Many houses and public infrastructure are threatened by the Ntahangwa River. Work to stabilize the banks of this river that crosses Bujumbura is underway. But the surrounding inhabitants seem to have lost hope. “They are trying to stabilize the banks, but the damage is enormous and we are risking too much,” says a resident of Kigobe neighborhood whose house is also threatened by the Ntahangwa River.
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