Poor situation in schools in West Kordofan

The infrastructure and equipment of basic and secondary schools in West Kordofan has deteriorated while the salaries of teachers are insufficient to meet the requirements for a monthly living.

Teachers from El Muglad told Radio Dabanga that the infrastructure of their schools remain poor. “Some schools are built of straw or wood, while others are built of fixed materials but they have collapsed because of lack of maintenaince.”

They pointed out that a number of schools in West Kordofan has teachers who are forced to suspend the study because of the heavy rainfall or lack of seating materials.

“The schools do not provide seating materials or textbooks, which is the responsibility of the pupils in many rural schools,” a teacher explained. He added there is a lack of drinking water and toilets in these schools.

In the northern and southern localities of West Kordofan, there are not enough teachers for all the schools, especially in the domains of science and English language. “Amlas school in Wedbanda locality accommodates more than 400 pupils, but has only four teachers.”

Another teacher told this station that they suffer from a lack of salaries. “It forces us to do extra work in other schools, sometimes more than three. At the same time we resort to private tuitions because of the soaring prices,” he said. “This has affected the academic achievements among pupils and students.”

North Kordofan state recently imposed a fee ranging from SDG3-10 ($0.50-1.65) for each basic and secondary school student, that is said to contribute to the state's development programme.