Why Guinea-Bissau?
I had the privilege of first visiting Guinea-Bissau in 2000, never imagining that I would return to spend four happy years teaching, leading and training teachers from 2009-2013. The experience, as you would expect, was life-changing.
Education is well behind the world standard in Guinea-Bissau. Guinea-Bissau has one of the lowest primary school completion rates in the world: under 30% of children complete primary school, which means they never access a high school education. In 2022 there were approximately 334,105 primary-aged children (typically ages 6 to 11) with approximately 1,100 primary schools across the country. Many of these schools are under-resourced, with less than half having access to clean water and sanitation facilities. Additionally, only about 25% of primary schools offer the full six-year cycle of primary education, limiting access for students in rural areas, who are unable to access a high school education. 161,000 children in Guinea-Bissau (out of a population of 1.4 millions people) do not attend any school because there is no school for them to go to.
My connection with Guinea-Bissau has remained strong and will continue as I work with New Hope Guinea-Bissau to build schools, develop curriculum, train teachers and support local communities there. Guinea-Bissau is a beautiful country and its people some of the loveliest that I have ever met. It is a privilege to be able to support the development of education in this country, through the work of New Hope Guinea-Bissau.
