With no electricity in the school at all, the room was lit by the sunlight light streaming through the open door and the three large windows, which were without panes of glass, and had instead rusty metal bars running from one side to the other.  The open windows also enabled the welcome breeze in.  This kept the air in the room fresh, but with it also came the dust and leaves from the central courtyard.

The state of the school was in desperate need of attention, not having been renovated since Madagascar was given Independence back in1960.  Big cracks ran down the crumbing concrete walls, the remaining patches of paint on the walls were flaking off and a long, well used blackboard on which it was hard to see the chalk writing, dominated the wall space at the front of the room.  Panels in the flimsy ceilings were missing, exposing the patchy corrugated tin roof above.  It began raining lightly during the lesson and much of that rain found its way through the holes in the ceiling into the classroom and onto the pupils inside it.  A torrential downpour during a lesson I'm sure must be a a nightmare for the pupils and the teacher.

The communal areas didn't really offer much more comfort.  During break times, part from gathering under the handful of trees on the premises, there is minimal shelter from rain. There are two basketball hoops but no sign of any balls.  No running water meant that there was no drinking fountain, or facility to wash hands and the squalid state of the long drop toilets was abhorrent.

Madagascar is amongst one of the poorest country in the world and its education system is in dire straits.  Two years ago the government cut funds to education by 30% and because of the political unrest, many of the western countries have withdrawn all non-essential aid.  As a result the education system has suffered tremendously.  Schools have had to continue without basic resources, regular teacher pay and facilities that should be condemned, so it is critical that NGOs like "The Ladybug Project" continue the good work that they do. 

Much still needs to be done, but already a year in The Ladybug Project has achieved a lot and, subject to funding, will hopefully continue to do so.  Next summer they hope to work with the school officials and city officials and will begin by tacking the easier things first: build enough desks for each classroom; replace blackboards in all of the rooms; heavily renovate the "bathroom" facilities; patch up concrete and rebuild broken walls; re-paint the school; undertake training projects with the teachers.  Next on the agenda are the bigger issues like supplying the school with electricity and running water.

The headmaster of the Diego Suárez High School has great visions and hopes for the school and is working closely with The Ladybug Projects but is aware of the reality that everything boils down to funding and, that will take time.

In the meanwhile, he continues to ensure that his teachers are providing the best education for the students as possible with their severely limited resources.  However, with a total of 1510 students in the school and just 14 classroom most of the class sizes exceed 100.  The minimal resources and facilities that the school has are over stretched and inadequate.

The school and its students are not looking for pity.  They want the opportunity to learn and in turn this will give them the ability to have an education which will give them a great start for life.  A difference to the lives of the students is being made here; children are learning!

The financial needs for Diego Suárez High School are large.  They need adequate bathroom facilities (seriously, the squalid conditions that are there at the moment are shocking), drinking water fountains, new doors and locks, new desks for the students and teachers, new blackboards, electricity throughout the school, the buildings renovated, resources for teachers, a fence for the perimeter of school, to renovate the courtyard that could be used as an area for sport, sport equipment and that is just for starters!

Thank you for taking the time to read this piece.  My aim is to help raise awareness and through this hopefully help The Ladybug Project acquire new funds for the school.