RESIDENTS living between Silver Hill and Soesdyke on the Linden-Soesdyke Highway have expressed concern about the turn of subsequent events now that the International Labour Organization (ILO)-funded programme, named Tackling Child Labour through Education (TACKLE), has come to an end.They remain mostly optimistic that the programme, which used to provide free transportation for their children to and from school, as well as three hot meals and other support services per week, would continue with funding from Government.

Beneficiaries of the programme over the past two years had been some 360-odd children attending the Kuru Kuru Nursery Class, the Kuru Kuru Primary School, and the Dora Secondary School, all housed in the compound formerly occupied by the Kuru Kuru College.

The TACKLE programme was funded to the tune of US$208,000 by the ILO and the International Program for the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC), which is sponsored by the European Union (EU); it also had US$11,000 counterpart funding from the Government of Guyana.

Initiated by the Ministry of Labour, Human Services and Social Security (MLHS&SS) in September 2011 under the name ‘School Retention and Child Labour Prevention Programme (SR&CLPP), the programme’s components had included provision of transportation; nutritional support; numeracy and literacy programmes/remedial classes; teachers’ training to better respond to the issues of school dropouts; truancy and child labour; parenting workshops; psychosocial support, including counselling services and awareness; and parent support groups. The Ministry of Education assisted with its implementation.

The programme has since been hailed by Labour Minister Dr. Nanda Gopaul, Project Officer Sharon Patterson of the ILO, and other ILO officials as an outstanding success in mitigating truancy, child labour and school drop-outs within the Linden/Soesdyke community.

Funds allocated to the programme were exhausted in July 2013, but the ILO was so pleased with the programme’s success that it found funds to keep at least two components — free transportation and free meals — going until the end of this school term. The funds have now been completely exhausted.

Commenting on the negative situation looming, highway resident Mr. Ray Ferrier said the Kuru Kuru Educational Complex is two and a half miles off the Linden-Soesdyke Highway in a very isolated setting.

“It is off the route from public transportation; so, before this project, the children generally had to walk the two and a half miles in to school and out again after classes. Some of them who lived off the highway and had to walk out to catch transportation from there to Kuru Kuru Junction in the first place usually were very tired when they eventually reached school.”

Then, because of the isolated nature of the location, the children also faced personal security problems. Ferrier recalled two instances in which two young school girls had been abducted and raped while walking home from school. He said that generally, after a while, quite a few children and their parents felt that going to school was too problematic, and the children became truant and eventually were inducted into child labour in farming, logging or charcoal manufacturing.

Ferrier said that he and a few others had sought the assistance of the Ministries of Labour and Education precisely because of these and other difficulties encountered by school children who attend the college.

Head teacher of the secondary school, Mr. Garfield Morris, recently recalled having to personally accompany on foot students returning to the highway from school, to ensure their safe journey home. He said: “The programme has been a great success in helping to prevent or eliminate child labour through education.”

Ms. Lorene Baird, ML&HSS Permanent Secretary, recently reported that children attended school more regularly and punctually as a result of the availability of transportation to and from school through the programme.

Teachers had reported children being more alert during instruction sessions, as they no longer have to walk long distances to get to school. Many are also returning home earlier, and total attendance at all the schools had grown since the project commenced.
The head teacher of the secondary unit has also reported improvements in CXC results in the 2012 sitting.

Children, parents and teachers also benefited from other components of the programme, such as its numeracy and literacy programme/remedial classes; teachers’ training; parenting workshops; psychosocial support, including counselling services; and awareness and parent support groups.

A long-serving teacher at the Kuru Kuru Secondary School told this publication: “As a result of this programme, and the kids staying in school, we had two girls from the secondary school being accepted into the Professional Nursing (health care) Programme. It was a great achievement. First time ever! Never ever before!”

Commenting on what may happen when school reopens on January 6th, staffers expressed concern that the situation may revert to what had obtained in the days when getting to school was a major problem for most, if not all, of the children; and with all the negative effects associated with truancy and child labour. They expressed optimism that Government may be able to assist the school children in the area, so that the benefits of the SR&CLPP can be sustained, and children living along the highway can get to school and improve their education and their prospects in life, thereby avoiding falling into the trap of child labour.
Written By Clifford Stanley