It is a relief for pupils and parents of St. Joseph Ndunda primary School in Manyatta Constituency, Embu County, following an intervention by the area Member of Parliament to rescue the institution from indefinite closure by the Ministry of Education for lack of infrastructure.

The primary school which has a total population of close to 150 pupils has been operating in St. Joseph Catholic Church compound since 2003, but in the beginning of 2024 the church wrote to the school board of management demanding them to vacate the church grounds before the commencement of first term in 2025.

To liberate the school from shut down, the school board approached the office of NG-CDF for financial support that would help the school acquire own land and set up infrastructure needed for smooth learning.

In response to the cry of pupils and parents of the school, NG-CDF acquired two acres of land for the school and later allocated KSh16 million for construction of classrooms.

The intervention by the office of Gitonga Mukunji, the area MP, has given a renewed hope to parents who were worried that their children could have been forced to travel for more that 3 kilometres to access basic education in the event the school would have closed.

Tarasio Njeru, a parent expressed confidence that the construction of the new school is complete, adding that the performance of the school will improve because their children will be in a more conducive learning environment.

He noted that their children have been learning in deplorable wooded classrooms which subjected them to flu during cold seasons and chest-related diseases during hot seasons because the classes are heavily engulfed by dust.

Julietah Njoki another parent, recalled how the school was at a blink of shut down by the Ministry of Health in 2023 for lack of proper sanitation.

According to Justin Muriithi, parent representative at the school board, their hands were tied when it came to initiating meaningful development for the school because the church was opposed to any move.

The construction of the new school, according to the school chairman Patrick Mbogo, is scheduled to be completed in the next three months.