October 10, 2020 (232News)
FREETOWN – Access to education has been a challenge in Sierra Leone and as a means of easing such challenge, Seawright Mining Company (SMC) is constructing the first ultramodern Senior Secondary School in Tungie, Gorama Mende Chiefdom Kenema District Eastern Region of Sierra Leone.
SMC Site Supervisor Construction, Mani Kai Biango said the project is 80% complete and that work should have been completed before now but challenges of transportation of materials from Kono to the site and the rains delayed the project.
He disclosed that the school will have 9 class rooms, one administrative building, a Library, a Canteen, Labs and lodging for teachers.
SMC COO, Jabulani Mkoko, described the school as the company’s flagship at the moment noting that the company has done very many things which are significant to the communities in which they are operating.
Seawright Mining is on exploration and the company is not generating any revenue but the idea of the school came out of the goodwill of the company.
“Our CEO and President of the company, Dr. Alfred Seawright, believes that the biggest asset that anybody can have is an educated workforce, therefore, in this school we are investing into the future of the country and not the company because the school will be producing future leaders, Engineers, Doctors and Technicians the impact of which will be seen in about 20 years from now. Investing in the future is investing in education that is how the idea came about.”
He said it was just lucky that the area they chose was the first to make the appeal and the company saw the need for them to have it because there were not any senior secondary schools there.
“At this initial stage, the school seems to be too big for the community but because we are thinking into the future and from a national point of view where the school will be be able to serve the entire nation.”
He went on to say SMC primary focus for the school is to develop core related subjects such as Science, technical subjects, engineering, mathematics among others as the school will be fully furnished with two computer science labs, one science lab, one biology lab and a fully furnished library among others.
On the side of management, the COO said they want a situation where the school is handed over to the community but while they will be waiting for it to be adopted by the government, they are going to engage the government especially the ministry of education to take the lead in hiring teachers, while the company will pay the staff for one year and the government will take over from there.
“But the advantage is we will be handing over a school that will be furnished.”
Tungie, Gorama Mende Chiefdom Town Speaker, Chief Henry S. Moriba pointed out that out of all the mining companies that have been operating in their chiefdom Seawright Mining Company is the first company that has made landmark in that chiefdom.
He went on to say it was very challenging for them and their children to access secondary school unless they travel to bigger towns and cities such as Bo, Kenema and Kono.
Chief Moriba who is representing the Chiefdom at the construction site thanked Seawright Mining Company for such gesture.
He disclosed that the school was not the only project the company had done for them. The first he said was a cold room.
Chief Moriba disclosed that Tungie is not the only community that will benefit from the school but over four chiefdoms and districts. He called on the government to join the project for it to be sustainable after the company would have handed it to them.
