“I want to learn how to fix things"
Classes have begun again for the children living in this poor community in Martissant, Port-au-Prince, thanks to the first temporary school set up by Save the Children after the eartquake.
Jimmy's story
At Cejecodema school, Jimmy Rifuse, 10, clutches his new notebook and pencils close to his chest. Today is the first day he has returned to school since the earthquake on January 12th turned his life upside down.
“I like to study and I want to learn”, says Jimmy. “My school fell in the quake but I don’t want to go back to it because I am afraid to have concrete over my head. I like this space because it is outside. I feel safe here.”
In Martissant, where homes and buildings were destroyed by the January 12 earthquake, the large tents ensure that children can continue their education and play and interact with each other in a safe environment.
In areas hit hard by the earthquake, Save the Children is providing these safe, temporary classrooms to help vulnerable children recover from the disaster. The agency plans to set up 300 temporary classrooms over the coming weeks, which would include repairing some less damaged structures.
In a country where only 51 percent of children attended school before the earthquake and where, on average, children only complete four years of schooling, this disaster has compounded already daunting challenges in education. To ensure that children continue to have access to education, Save the Children will work with both government schools and with private and community schools.
At the Martissant school, Jimmy says he will study hard to be a mechanic.
“I want to learn how to fix things so I can be helpful to my family and the community.”
