Gambian Schools Trust - Manjai Kunda

Gambian Schools Trust - Manjai Kunda The Gambian Schools Trust, a registered UK charity, was set up two years ago by Christine Schofield and Kathy Tristram, following a visit to Manjai Kunda in connection with The Children Of The Gambia.

The school supported by this charity was in danger of closure because of mounting debts, including rents.

Teachers were working for nothing and had not been paid for several months.

Christine used her management experience to plan ways in which finances could be better managed, while Kathy (a trained teacher) ran workshops and training sessions to introduce teachers to different methods of engaging their students.

The charity has been working alongside The Children Of The Gambia, initially to clear debts and to find sponsors to pledge as little as two pounds a month to pay the teachers' wages.

This was achieved within three months. In 2002 they were able to begin giving support to a second school. The main aim now is to raise money for teachers' wages and major resources.

The charity's founders are therefore engaged in identifying schools where lack of funding for teachers could bring about closure, and in thinking of ways to resolve the fact that children who can't pay to attend school are simply sent home.