Citizens of Gbarzon District, Grand Gedeh County residing in the United States of America, under the aegis of Gbarzon District Associations in the Americas(GDAA) are leveraging on the opportunities found in the diaspora to support initiatives in their community through massive investment in the educational needs of the school going children by constructing a structure and renovating another building which has been in a bad state and transforming the two into a modern high school and also embarking upon expanding a current junior high school to a full high school.
According to details of the projects, the first one was undertaken in Jarwodee City, District #3, Grand Gedeh County to cushion the effect of the lack of a full fledge high school to cater to the ever increasing number of students in the community compromising of 10 neighboring towns who upon graduating from the elementary and a semi-junior high school have to migrate to bigger cities to continue their education.
“The project is an outcome of a lot of efforts put in place, beginning with a need assessment done by the organization to ascertain priority areas that will need attention, be it short or long run and have the potential to alleviate most , if not all of the problems confronting our people. Of course they are many and competitive, but we are for now using our scale of preference and based on the availability of resources to undertake and execute those projects in record time. So this is one of the major projects and others will follow in different sectors which will include but not limited to health, agriculture, water and sanitation, social services, and others”, Mr. Arthur Tenty, Chairman of the Education Committee of GDAA said why providing background information to the projects.
He said resources for the high school project came from rallies, donations and dues from the members of the organization who were passionate and enthusiastic of the initiative and thanked them for finding it worthy to identify with the leadership. “This is a self-help project by our people. They were all happy and united in purpose so that we all will break that curse of lack of high school opportunities in our area. At the end of it all, no one takes an individual credit but the collective resolve of our people including the local citizens who took the project as their own efforts to change their destiny must be commended”, he said.
Mr. Tenty who was recently in Liberia to assess the project preparatory to its dedication as well as compiling information on other projects for future undertaking and holding discussions with local authority and citizens of the area , said it was sad that in this age, a very large community of more than 10 thousand people will lack basic necessities and facilities such as conducive learning environment, health care , roads and other infrastructure , stressing that the organization was poised to do more for its people.
Speaking extensively via phone from his base in the United States, the President of the organization, Mr. Jerome J. Pour said he was excited that his administration was able to initiate and finish the project despite the many challenges , including the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic which seriously affected the income and involvement of the membership of the organization. He said what prevailed most over the challenges encountered was the resolution and determination of the entire membership to do the project as a flagship for the many others to be executed.
He noted that now that the Jarwodee High School is up and standing, focus will now be turned to the expansion of the Toe Memorial High School, in Toe Town, District #3, Grand Gedeh County to a full high school status , incorporating vocational and technical education curriculum that will help the students to acquire skills for employment and empowerment once they graduate from the school.
“We are expanding the existing junior high and semi-high school in Toe Town. I am talking about the Toe Memorial Institute (TMI) to become a full high school and adding vocational and technical curriculum to the academic curriculum so that upon graduation, the students would have acquired employable skills that will give them the opportunities to get jobs, be employers of labor and also empower them. This is against the backdrop of the prevailing youth unemployment in the country especially our area that does not have such avenue to generate income through skills”
When asked about what other enhancement opportunities being provided besides the physical construction of the schools, Mr. Pour said his organization has provided tables, chairs and other instructional materials to the school in Jarwodee City and efforts are being made to provide scholarship opportunities to some teachers to advance themselves at some teachers training colleges in the country, such as the Kakata Rural Teachers Training Institute, Webbo Rural Teachers’ Training Institute, etc.
Meanwhile, citizens who gathered at the dedication at the school in Jarwodee City expressed their thanks and appreciations to the leadership and members of GDAA for the historic efforts and while promising to make the project their own, appealed to their kinsmen in the Diaspora not to relent in their efforts to transform the community through impactful projects.
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