Gatoto Primary School provides high quality education at low cost to 900 children in the Mukuru kwa Reuben slum in Nairobi, Kenya. It aims to break the cycle of poverty in which the children live, raise economic prospects in the area and reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS infection among the young. The staff and a parents' committee, which is elected annually, manage the school.
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| The rate of growth of the Kenyan economy has continuously declined since the 1960s, culminating in a negative growth rate in 2000. This has had significant effect of the citizens of Kenya - Today, over 50% of Kenyans live below the poverty line of $1 a day. Over half of the population of Nairobi live in informal settlements, commonly called "slums." Here, the urban poor face a wide range of physical, social and environmental problems. These include poor living conditions and job prospects, insecure tenure, poor environmental and health conditions, limited access to facilities such as water, sanitation, sewerage, electricity and very limited access to opportunities, especially in education and training.
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| The village elders in Mukuru kwa Rueben and the local Chief realised that, without their initiative, the majority of children in their area would not receive any primary education. As a result, they came together with the community and established Gatoto Primary School in 1994. Classes were first held in a local church, but the school was later transferred to a four roomed wooden building constructed with a donation from Feed the Children, an American agency. Two Irish volunteers, Colman Farrell and Vanessa Liston worked with the school in 1995 to 1996 and helped the project to secure the support of Feed the Children for the core running costs. In its first year, five untrained teachers catered for 370 pupils within four classrooms. Today, with the ongoing hard work of the community and the generous support of outside donors, the school has 17 classrooms, 24 teachers, six support staff and 900 pupils.
Click here for a animated picture that shows the growth of Gatoto since 1994.
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