“Derbat Schools Complex in East Jebel Marra Faces Environmental and Financial Challenges Threatening Education”
The Derbat Schools Complex in East Jebel Marra is facing a number of environmental and economic challenges that are affecting the continuity of the educational process, despite ongoing efforts by teachers and volunteers to maintain learning in the area.
Derbat Primary School was established in 1977. In 2023, it was upgraded into a full educational complex known as the Derbat Schools Complex, which now includes several levels of education. The complex comprises a kindergarten, primary school for boys and girls, and intermediate (middle) school for both boys and girls.
Approximately 100 children are enrolled in the kindergarten section, while 778 pupils attend the primary level and 289 students study at the intermediate level. The complex is supervised by 17 teachers and four staff members.
Ms. Nabila Al-Tahir Abakar, a volunteer teacher at the complex, told Sudan Sawa Sawa that the school environment faces significant challenges. She explained that the school’s location near a slaughterhouse, a police station, and a market negatively affects the students’ health environment, particularly as the school building lacks adequate fencing and protection.
She added that difficult living conditions over the past two years have led many parents to fall behind on paying school fees, which has in turn affected the ability to provide incentives for teachers and volunteers. She also noted that many students spend their school day until 2:00 p.m. without having breakfast.
In a related development, Mr. Dawa Al-Bait Ali, a teacher at both the primary and intermediate levels in the complex, called for several supportive interventions to stabilize the educational process. These include:
– Parents committing to pay the monthly school fee of 10,000 Sudanese pounds per student.
– Providing a safe learning environment by building a proper fence around the school and equipping classrooms.
– Increasing incentives for volunteer teachers, which currently do not exceed 175,000 Sudanese pounds per month.
– Supplying textbooks and necessary teaching materials.
– Addressing administrative challenges related to organizing primary and secondary examinations, particularly the coordination of student examination numbers.
Teachers and community members believe that supporting educational institutions in rural areas such as East Jebel Marra is a crucial step toward ensuring the continuity of education and providing a suitable learning environment for children, especially in light of the economic and humanitarian conditions facing the region.