Construction of a school in Freetown

6,864 children residing in the Kroo Bay non-formal settlement slum community are confronted with violence and a wide range of social and health disadvantages due to extreme poverty. Challenges such as overcrowding, inadequate access to clean water and sanitation, substandard housing, limited availability of essential health and educational services, high unemployment rates, and a lack of career opportunities place these children and their families in desperate need of support. According to a Slum Dwellers International report, 67.7% of the population is self-employed, while 12.1% are unemployed. The Kroo Bay community has endured since the period of slavery. During the 11-year civil war, displaced individuals ended up in these slums because they couldn’t afford expensive rents in other parts of the country. The city’s overpopulation pushed more people into these slums and informal hillside settlements. The absence of basic social services exposed residents to gangs, crime, violence, and prostitution. As reported by Slum Dwellers International, 85.9% of the Kroo Bay population are tenants, indicating that most residents spend a significant portion of their income on rent.

This project aims to target the most vulnerable 300 children in the first year of 2023. If these young people and their families in the slum communities are not provided with opportunities to improve their lives and create pathways to better opportunities, they remain at a heightened risk of descending further into extreme poverty, crime, violence, and trauma-related disorders.

Project Activities: 

Project goals:

• Construct a six-classroom school facility, complete with a computer room, staff offices, an assembly hall, toilets, kitchen facilities, and outdoor showers and toilets for the entire community.