A Wealth of knowledge

Hervens Jeanty, the manager of CIDA's Fonds Bati Lavi, talks to schoolchildren in one of the project's 22 schools. "Local Haitian officials manage the various sites. A school council, including parents, is also in place. This is crucial to ensuring the school's future."

Konesans se richès― Knowledge is wealth, says a Haitian proverb. Many Haitian families firmly believe in this saying. After the earthquake of January 2010, many families clamoured for the rapid rebuilding of schools.

In Trouin, a small town about 40 kilometres south of the capital, the earthquake damaged St. Marc School beyond repair. The building had to be torn down. Yet scarcely five months after the disaster, children had returned to school in temporary CIDA-funded buildings.

Well aware that education is the springboard to a brighter future, parents began performing small miracles to buy uniforms, pencils, and notebooks so their children could go back to school.

Schoolchildren returning to their classrooms were a sight to behold, see the cheerful and smartly dressed girls with ribbons in their hair, and the boys with their chests puffed out in their spotless shirts. Listening to the younger children singing their ABCs and the older children reciting their lessons, you could just tell that the reopening of St. Marc School had restored a zest for life. After the tragedy and the grief of the January 2010 earthquake, multiplication tables and grammar lessons allowed these children to ease back into a comforting routine.

More than 400 primary and secondary school pupils now attend St. Marc School. Enrolment has increased since the earthquake, as many children migrated to Trouin with their displaced families.

Germain Erlin managed the Trouin project. He is very proud of the rebuilt school and of everything that has been accomplished in so little time. The buildings are of wood and remain temporary.

More than 400 primary and secondary school pupils now attend St. Marc School. Enrolment has increased since the earthquake, as many children migrated to Trouin with their displaced families.

When the schools were erected, speed was the prime objective. That timely action has yielded results, as all of the children who benefited from the project were able to avoid losing a school year. "Thanks to this project carried out with Canadian funding, the school was rebuilt and benches were procured. The project also enabled us to provide training for school officials in classroom management, as well as psychosocial training to help teachers and children. All of this is invaluable to the community," he says.

Thanks to CIDA's local funds for local initiatives, 22 schools have been rebuilt in the commune of Léogâne, enabling nearly 6,000 pupils to return to school. Made up of semi-permanent classrooms, these multipurpose schools are equipped with furniture and educational material to accommodate teachers and children.

Hervens Jeanty, the manager of CIDA's Fonds Bati Lavi [fund to build life], is delighted to see how the community has taken ownership of this project. "Local Haitian officials manage the various sites. A school council, including parents, is also in place at each of the project's 22 schools. This is crucial to ensuring the school's future," he says.

Project profile for Bati Lavi Fund

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