The Mwijabu Primary School Special Unit in Changamwe constituency is in dire need of classrooms and teaching staff.
Despite serving 27 children with different disabilities from the Port Reitz and Airport wards in Changamwe, the unit has only two teachers.
According to education standards, one teacher should be in charge of five learners who live with disabilities, but at Mwijabu, the two teachers are overwhelmed.
The special unit has only one classroom, which has been subdivided with plywood.
School head teacher Ramadhan Issa Yusuf said they have two groups of learners: the foundation group and the intermediate group.
“It is very difficult for these two groups to learn in the same classroom, which has only been separated with plywood,” he said.
Yusuf said he joined Mwijabu Primary School in 2022.
In the 2021–22 financial year, the special school received only Sh64,000 from the Ministry of Education to support its operations.
However, in the 2022–23 and 2023–24 financial years, the institution did not receive the funding from the government, he said.
This has not only been a challenge in purchasing learning equipment for the learners, but the school cannot undertake any repairs to the single classroom, the head teacher said.
“We have been having financial challenges because the funds we receive from the government are not even adequate to run operations. Mostly, we depend on well-wishers,” Yusuf said.
He said the classroom has a leaking roof and no ramp for the wheelchairs. They are also experiencing congestion in the classroom.
Yusuf said they need a bigger classroom for the children with disabilities.
Recently, the school got help from the Kenya Marine Fisheries and Socio-Economic Development (KEMFSED) through the Bukhayo Development Self-Help Group.
Bukhayo Development Self-Help Group chairman Constant Oundo said they decided to help build a decent learning space for the learners, following recommendations from some of its members.
He said all these ideas came up when they were looking for a project to do as a group after getting funds from KEMFSED.
Last year, the Bukhayo Development Self-Help Group was trained through KEMSFED, a Word Bank Project, and was to receive some funding for development.
However, they are required to write down a project idea, and one of the requirements was the provision of a title deed indicating where the project will be undertaken.
"In our group, most people are from upcountry; therefore, getting land with a title deed was a challenge. We were advised to get a place, even in school or hospital, as long as it is something that benefits the community, and that is how the idea of building a classroom at the Mwijabu special unit came into existence," Oundo said.
They paid a courtesy call to the school head, who told them there was space for a classroom to accommodate more students who keep enrolling in the school.
The school head instructed them to write an official letter, which was shared with the school board, which approved their request.
"We took the idea to the Kenya Marine Fisheries and Socio-Economic Development (KEMFSED) Project, who were the ones training us, and later wrote a proposal that was approved and our initiative appreciated," Oundo said.
"This was a big milestone for us because some people start projects for their own benefit, but for us, we had an interest in people; my child or any other child can join the school and study there.”
In their area, Oundo said, parents raising children with disabilities go through so many challenges when it comes to education because they have to take them to schools that are far from where they live.
So, when the school head teacher told them about the challenge of the unavailability of classrooms, they saw it right to build one.
He said the project amounted to Sh3.1 million, but as a group, they contributed 10 per cent, which is equivalent to Sh300,100.
The World Bank gave them a grant of Sh2.8 million, which will also help in repairing the old classroom.
"KEMFSED has helped and guided us throughout the project, which is still ongoing, and we feel like winners. We urge them to continue helping," he said.