Marofarihy ecole

This pump was built especially for the school. The director and two other teachers have a key so that they can be in control of the pump.They have opening hours for the pump to prevent the children from playing with it, and they are tempted to washing their feet. The pump broke down two months ago, but was repaired by Bertin.

The principal teacher explains the challenges related to education in Marofarihy. Not all families can afford the school fees for their children so many children cannot go to school. The school has 575 students. Parents have to pay 32.000 ariary per year per student.

As we visit the pump we encounter a woman who comes to fetch water. She uses the water to cook, she says. Prior to the pump she fetched water from the river and the rice fields. The advantage of the pump is that she does not need to walk far anymore and there are no diseases among her children. This saves her money and now she can buy clothes and furniture. During the dry season the water turned red. She left the water to settle before using it. Now the colour of the water is normal again.

The advantage for the students is that they don’t need to walk long distances to the river to drink water, which is polluted. According to the teachers, their health has improved since they drink from the pump.