Kai’s Building Force in Action!

Amazing developments in Magbeni this week. Joseph M. Kai, our school site co-ordinator, has been arranging for a new building to be constructed in place of what was once only a hut.

Together the local community has been putting together materials and skills to collaborate in the construction of our new building, as well as contributing resources for the education that will take place inside!

Kai tells us:

"We are presently constructing a permanent structure where we built the hut the last time AJ was here. Presently we have reached that height. A very good news towards this development is that we have received some aid from parents. Presently we have sticks, 4 boards, sand from the Magbeni community and most of all is that 2 parents provided 4 bundles of zinc yesterday. We are sure of roofing the building this week and we want to start using it as soon as possible. Lots of love Magbeni team"

Typically it can be difficult to get the local communities involved in the improvement of EducAid sites and the running of the schools. As poverty is so widespread in Sierra Leone, it is not always easy to convince locals to participate unless they see a direct and immediate benefit. Kai has done a fantastic job of involving the community and persuading them it is worth their while to be part of a project that will improve the standards of the local education, little by little.

We hope to implement more projects and opportunities in other areas that provide chances to engage the public, as well as teachers, parents and students, as this is how we will change the country! With people all making their own contribution and doing what they can.


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AJ & Kai Making us Proud in Magbeni

One cornerstone of our mission, and something that EducAid has always been immensely proud of, is being an intrinsically Sierra Leonean organisation, and being cemented in the centre of our communities. From the very inception of the charity we committed to establishing our roots in Sierra Leone - not to fall in to the trap of many NGOs - but to empower Sierra Leoneans themselves to initiate their own change. This week, Miriam’s visit to our school at Magbeni revealed an initiative devised by some of the staff there that encapsulates this very fact, better than we could ever describe it. This is Miriam’s account:


“I visited Magbeni yesterday and found myself incredibly touched by their latest activities at the school. On the suggestion of AJ, our site coordinator there, and his deputy, Kai, the staff members have been ‘taxing’ themselves for a development fund. Their idea was to use this time and money in order to be able to do things they perceive as necessary within the school. To reiterate, this was an initiative dreamed up entirely by AJ and Kai – what a fantastic and entrepreneurial thing to do.

During the height of the Ebola crisis they contributed 1 Friday each and built 10 large group work tables and 20 benches; they put in a new ceiling in the library as well as laying a new floor. This week I met a new building that has been built as a library - it is nearly finished. Their attitude is so lovely and encouraging, I was really impressed.

The work that they have undertaken within the school is not the end of it. AJ (in blue) and his deputy, Kai, are both past pupils, and they are so incredibly committed to the EducAid beliefs and really lead the team. The photos of the two of them is with their other construction project, something that they have persuaded the community to help them with i.e. a couple of outside classrooms that can accommodate everyone in the village. They are determined that they, and the community that we are helping, will not force EducAid to carry the whole burden. It is a very very unusual attitude, and in great contradiction to the usual dependence and sense of entitlement that people often feel when they’ve been reliant on charity and aid for such a long time. It really reminds us of how much work that we’re doing to change things here – not just education, nor housing and food, but real social change. I’m so proud of those boys and long may them keep it up!”

I can do nothing but to reiterate Miriam’s words here. It is an immensely powerful story and one that signals such positive change in these communities. Through our educational morals we have inspired others to come together and work for the greater good. Go AJ, Go Kai, and Go Magbeni!

We’re beginning to accept our students in to our schools – running through the necessary precautions as we always have - and classes will be up and running again very soon. This is such a great story to propel us off in to this period of hard work, we can say nothing but thank you.


It is when one considers the compassion and generosity of these small acts that we can really appreciate the impact of the hard work that we do. It reiterates our mission and motto: Learning for Life in Sierra Leone.