Rural Health Sector, the World’s Best Teacher, and Other Reports

Every week, RuralReporters.com collate reports on development issues in rural Africa and its environs.

This report includes some of our top picks from recent must-read research, interviews, blogs, and in-depth articles, carefully selected to help you keep up with global issues.

Here are some of the updates you may have missed from the previous week:

Kenyan Science Teacher Peter Tabichi Wins Global Prize

Peter Tabichi, a science teacher from rural Kenya, who gives away most of his salary to support poorer pupils, has won a $1m prize (£760,000) for the world’s best teacher.

Tabichi, a member of the Franciscan religious order, has been praised for his achievements in a deprived school with crowded classes and few text books.

The award, announced in a ceremony in Dubai, recognises the “exceptional” teacher’s commitment to pupils in a remote part of Kenya’s Rift Valley.

He gives away 80% of his pay to support pupils, at the Keriko Mixed Day Secondary School in Pwani Village, Nakuru, who otherwise could not afford uniforms or books.

Improving Nigeria’s Rural Health Sector

Part of the major problems that hamper proper service delivery in the health sector is lack of adequate electricity. Most rural areas do not have electricity in their health care centres and are compelled to depend on fossil powered generators. Consequently, not only do they spend so much money on fuelling and maintaining the generators, they suffer the adverse effects of the generator use such as noise pollution that disturbs the health facility environment that normally should require pin-drop tranquility to enable the patients have a peaceful and healthy recuperation from the medical care they are receiving.

However, there is hope to mitigate this energy debacle in the rural health facilities. It is time these rural health facilities look into the direction of alternative energy that comes from the renewable sources. This includes mostly solar energy. This could come in form of Solar Home Systems (SHS) and Micro Grids.

Nigeria’s Largest Rural Mini-Grid To Electrify 600 Households in Ogun

Solar Nigeria for the People Limited (Solar Nigeria FTP), the Nigerian subsidiary of Solar Philippines at the weekend signed a Community Agreement with Ode Omi Community to invest about half a million dollars to build Nigeria’s largest rural mini-grid.

The project when completed will electrify 634 households, seven schools, three hospitals, eight religious organizations, and more than 90 businesses in the community. The project which is due to be commissioned in September 2019 will supply a peak load of 99kW to the community in its first phase, and up to 500kW in its second phase.

New education ecosystem uses tech to support rural communities

The Vodacom Foundation in partnership with the Department of Basic Education, Nelson Mandela Foundation, UN Women and Global Citizen, showcased a new education ecosystem at the Divhani Community Crèche and Frank Ravele Secondary School in Vhembe District, Limpopo, on Friday, 22 March 2019.

The new ecosystem will see Vodacom intensify its support to its already established 12 schools of excellence, identified in partnership with the Department of Basic Education, and the 15 Early Childhood Development (ECD) Centres Vodacom committed to upgrading over a period of three years. This forms part of Vodacom’s commitment to bring about quality education for previously disadvantaged communities.

 

 

Busayo Sotunde is a prolific writer with special focus on Business, Entrepreneurship, Reproductive Health and other development issues in Africa. Her articles have been published by different outlets including Investing Port and Ventures-Africa.com. She has a penchant for reading and sustainable development. Follow Busayo on Twitter @BusayomiSotunde
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