Bank supports PLWDs

By MELYNE BAROI
ONE of three newly renovated classrooms in Central’s Gabagaba Primary School will be dedicated to persons living with a disability (PLWD) through a community project funded by the Bank of South Pacific (BSP) Financial Group.
The renovation which cost K30,000 included two classrooms for grade five students and a water tank.
The school project is an initiative by an advocate for inclusive education and local consultant attached with international agency Motivation Australia, Rose Launch.
Launch said the classroom would provide an arena for PLWDs to participate in and have access to basic education that they had been deprived of in the past.
“I used to provide one-on-one consultations for up to 10 PLWDs in my home in Gabagaba and although my services were open to the whole village, only a few turned up,” she said.
“I visit others who attend the Gabagaba Primary School from time to time to check on their progress and then advise their parents of the techniques they can use at home to help their children learn.”
However, Rose said that as special-needs students, they required more attention through a more convenient learning space
“The refurbished classrooms being allocated to them is a breakthrough for the village and country as a whole as we continue to break the barrier for PLWDs,” she said.
BSP chief executive officer Robin Fleming said the school was one of the group’s 50 community projects in the country and a way of growing their relationships within rural and marginalised communities.
“It is heartwarming to know we are helping students who are less advantaged than others,” Fleming said.
“This is a marketing project where BSP executives were able to leave their normal duties to deliver such a community project with the help of a local contactor.”