10th August 2015

New preschool

We were delighted this week to open a new preschool in Belkuchi, Sirajganj.   Sirajganj is a char area with lots of small islands in the river.   Life on the chars is particularly difficult because they are cut off from the mainland and there is little economic activity or opportunity on the chars.   Getting to the mainland requires a boat trip and often the cost of this is prohibitive.  So these people are really cut off, particularly in the monsoon as now when the river runs fast and it is not always safe to get to the mainland.

Image:  new preschool at Belkuchi, Sirajganj

The Pebble distributor for the UK, Ireland, France and Scandinavia have funded this latest preschool in Belkuchi and you can see from the pictures that the children are delighted and so eager to learn.   School in Bangladesh starts at 6 years old and so the Pebble preschools for the children of the Pebble artisans provides a really valuable learning experience for them before the age of 6.    Their attendance at preschool also enables them to better get access to places at primary school when they reach 6 years because they are seen as good and trained students already.

Image:  so eager to learn

This is the 8th Pebble preschool and we are excited to continue this programme to set them up alongside all the Pebble production centres around the country.

Not only education but the preschool also keeps the children safe while the mummies are working.   The biggest killer of under 5s in Bangladesh is drowning.   It’s a statistic which surprises many – who imagine it might be dysentery or other similar illness.   Bangladesh is a delta region with many rivers and many more ponds and water bodies, none of which are cordoned off in any way and so sadly many children die every year after falling into these water bodies.   It is particularly true on the char islands which are, of course, surrounded by a fast flowing river at this time of the year and so we are so happy to have this new preschool on Belkuchi, not just to educate the children and give them a better start in life but also, so fundamentally, to keep them safe.

Thank you so much to Liz and Gaynor, our wonderful distributors at Best Years Ltd  .