May 06, 2008
Banquet for Africa
I arrived in the USA yesterday, where I will be for the next month or so, speaking at different churches - see my itinerary here.
This Thursday (8th), I will be speaking at a Banquet for Africa, here in Richmond, VA, organised by World Horizons.
I will be sharing about the ministry in Burkina Faso, and particularly for the vision for the school we will be building in Gorom-Gorom. We also hope to raise funds on the evening for the school. Please pray for this event.
Thank you.
April 30, 2008
Gorom-Gorom School Video
Here is a short (4 min) video about the school we are building in Gorom-Gorom, Burkina Faso.
Read more about the school HERE, and donate to help us build it HERE.
Tags: africa sahel burkina burkina faso gorom-gorom schools building video
April 21, 2008
Building a Primary School for Gorom-Gorom
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In partnership with the Burkinabe church, we are working to build and resource a primary school in Gorom-Gorom in Burkina Faso.
I have now uploaded pages about the school HERE, and you can DONATE to it HERE.
THE VISION
Pastor Daniel Kabore of the Gorom-Gorom church has a vision for a Christian primary school in the town - a school open to all, regardless of religion, race, or sex, and particularly aimed at helping provide quality education for the poorest and most vulnerable sector of society.Glenwood Church in Cardiff is committed to support the church in Burkina Faso in building this school, and is looking for partners and donors in this project.
EDUCATION NEEDS IN BURKINA FASO
Burkina Faso has one of the lowest literacy and school-enrolment ratios of any country, and the existing schools in Gorom-Gorom are not meeting the current need. Education is a key factor for Burkina Faso's development, and is central to achieving the Millennium Development Goals.BUILDING THE SCHOOL
The school will be built in two phases. We aim to build Phase 1 by October 2009 with 3 classrooms, a head teacher's house, a well, kitchen, and toilets. The estimated cost of Phase 1 is £40,000 ($80,000).Tags: africa sahel burkina burkina faso gorom-gorom schools building construction
January 09, 2008
Gando school
One of my projects for the coming year is - with the help of my home church in Cardiff - to help fulfil the vision of Pastor Daniel, of the church in Gorom-Gorom, to build a Christian primary school in the town.
We have been looking at alternative designs for building a school that would be more student-friendly, aesthetic, and environmentally positive than the cement-brick “ovens” in which classes are often 
held. So, on Saturday, I took Pastor Daniel down to Gando, a village near Tenkodogo, to look at the Gando school. The school, designed and built by Francis Kéré (right), won the 2004 Aga Khan prize for architecture. We wanted to see if we could rifle any good ideas.
It was about 200km each way, so we left at 6am to give us time to have a good look, and get back before sunset. It turned out that Kéré, born in Gando, but now living in Germany, had come back to the village for the holidays, and had not yet returned. He kindly offered to give us the guided tour. Kéré is very modest about his achievements, emphasising that the whole exercise has been an experiment, and that by building in phases, he is trying different approaches and learning as he goes. He has been very helpful as we think about how we might proceed in Gorom-Gorom.
Phase 1 (2001)
This is the prize-winning building, seen above. Almost all materials and work is local - mostly earth and rock, both in ready supply. The walls are made from pressed mud bricks, with a measure of cement mixed in, using the brick press. The bricks are resistant, but need to be protected from the rain - in this case by the suspended tin roof.
Two adjoining classrooms had different floors – one cement, one dammed earth. The dammed earth seemed visibly to be resisting better. The ceiling of the classrooms was made by lying bricks on top of rows of metal bars, providing insulation and allowing air flow. The tin sheet roof is suspended over the brick ceiling by a metal frame, protecting the building from rain, and allowing air flow. Kéré says that they have not had any problems with the wind, even during very high winds that knocked down trees.
There are inter-class spaces, themselves classroom-sized, and could be eventually bricked in if necessary to form extra classes. However, they are freely used by children for their own study, and offer a place of shelter outside. Kéré has been experimenting with window designs that cut down on dust, and that can be opened fully (as shutters) to allow more air flow at other times.
