Educators and learners of Sarasvati Primary School, in the rural area of Frasers in Tongaat, are celebrating the upgrades made to their school after getting a glimpse of their three new classrooms and ablution facilities.
The R1 million upgrades were made possible by a donation from the Sibaya Community Trust. Vivian Reddy, chairperson of Sibaya Casino and Sibaya Community Trust and Trustee Former Judge President, Vuka Tshabalala conducted the official hand-over on 9 December. At the hand-over, Reddy said he was passionate about community upliftment and that doing service in the rural areas has always been rewarding for him. He also mentioned that education has been on top of the agenda at the Trust and spoke of the MADI programme through which the Trust spent over R14 million by adopting 14 schools that had zero percent pass rates in science and maths.
The schools had digital learning spaces created together with the necessary technological infrastructure, deployment of specialist skills had to be recruited and bursaries handed out. “The programme enabled the pass rate to go from 0% to 85% in a two-year period. This was a remarkable achievement for the schools and for us at the Trust. Being here on this historical ground that was donated by the Subramani family from Fraser over 78 years ago is very special as it carries a rich history on many levels. “I was intrigued to learn that on this very ground, our former president, Nelson Mandela, used to have his meetings with Chief Albert Luthuli. This was mentioned in the book ‘A Long Walk to Freedom. When I heard of the dire need of classrooms for this school, and taking into consideration the plight of the children, the decision to sponsor the classrooms was an easy one for us at the Trust,” said Reddy.
Joe Zoko, the Principal of Sarasvati Primary School, spoke of the eight classrooms they originally had and which had to be condemned by the Department of Education due to the state of collapse of the building, leaving the children with hardly any classrooms. While the Department of Education loaned a few pre-fab units to them, it was no way near accommodating the over 300 learners. Zoko said: “Sibaya Community Trust’s sponsorship came at a very crucial point when our learners were suffering the consequences of being without classrooms which also impacted on their mental well-being.” He thanked Reddy and the Trust for their role in community upliftment and for the generous donation to the school.
