Su'u National Secondary School, Roofing Iron Situation and Need

'You lukim seleva ontop roofing lo somefala house oketa paintim black nao.'

This is the cry of a former student of the Suu National Secondary School, given, after viewing photos of the schools roofing Iron infrastructural decay on classrooms, published online, from what has been a constant challenge, for the SSEC Educational Authority Board to address - the repair of its schools classrooms iron and roofing situation.

Suu National Secondary School is located on Malaita Province, in the Solomon Islands. It is part of a broader educational framework established to serve the communities in the region established under the South Seas Evangelical Education Authority.

Over the years, the School has played a crucial role in advancing education in Malaita, promoting academic development and leadership among youth. Over a few decades, it has contributed to increasing literacy rates and improving educational outcomes in the province.

It provides double streams from Forms 1 to 7, boasting more than a few hundred registerations per year, mostly from students all over Malaita Province and throughout the provinces.

The school generally offers a curriculum that includes subjects in arts, sciences, and vocational training, preparing students for further education or entry into the workforce. The institution emphasizes community involvement, cultural values and Christian values, reflecting the local context.

The ongoing challenges faced by the School such as resource constraints, infrastructure, and educational policy changes—have drastically impacted Suu National Secondary School's development and operations over the years.

School grants have been given annually, by the Ministry of Education, but unfortunately given the geographical location of the School at West Kwaio, Malaita Province, including challenges of food shortages, transportation costs and inadequate administrational supplies and medical supplies, these annual government grants, have always proven to be either insufficient or is a constant challenge, more specifically in the area of addressing improved infrastructural development.

The survival of the schools administrational services and student academic performances over the years, is a true testament to the schools resilience and belief in its motto, 'learn to live' and in its faith in Gods providence.

This issue, of insuffucient funds, is a constant issue that has drastically affected the schools ability, to source roofing irons for its much needed repairs on its classrooms. As tough and rough as it seems, the current challenge however, is not impossible to fix, as challenges in the past, such as the erection a new head office and church building, have been a success story, largely by collaborative efforts made through fundraising drives, initiated, by Ex Suu Students, working together with the schools administration and Educational Authority, including charity donations from local business houses and through local church donations.

These challenges however, took a very long time for them to properly addressed, largely due to the constraints in funds, but they were not difficult to overcome, as Suu National Secondary Schools Edcuational Authority, have recently successfully built a new school head office and church building, further proving the case, that they can get the job done.

Unfortunately in this particular case, it would need a collaborative effort by all stakeholders involved, for the challenge to be completed, especially the efforts of Ex Suu students fundraising drives and local partners working together, with the school administation and edcuational authority and other interested donor partners willing to commit to see an upgrade and change in the schools classrooms iron roofing situation.

At such magnitude, it is also important to highlight, that the roofing repairs for Suu National Secondary Schools classrooms, can never be achieved by the efforts of the Educational Authority alone or by the Member of Parliment for West Kwaio. This is a challenge, that would require the combined collaborative effort, of Ex Suu students, working together with the South Seas Evangelical Educational Board, Domestic and International Donor Partners, the Ministry of Education and the Solomon Islands government.

For purposes of clarity, it is also important to mention that given the sheer number of infrastructural needs from communities from West Kwaio, that the current Member of Parliament for West Kwaio and his administration, is presently faced with, measured against the slash cut in budget, in terms of the Constituency Development Funds, allocated for each constituency this year alone, the sheer scale of this upgrade, (to repair all of Su'u National Secondary Schools classrooms iron roofing situation) cannot be a realistic expectation, held by the Constituency, to be funded using the limited CDF. This is a challenge that will need a combined collaborative effort, from all and by all stake holders involved.

Solomon Wiseka, a member of the Ex Suu Forum on facebook, has taken the intiative to make the call, to all of Suu NSS Ex Students, to consider addressing the issue, as a collaborative intitiative, calling on each Ex Suu Student, to pay for a roofing iron each, to address the Schools classrooms roofing issue. A call that is definitely going to work, if all Suu Ex students have the heart to remember their old school.

Mr Wiseka made the appeal to all Honorable members of Malaita Province, the current Malaita government and to each respective PSs including Directors, Doctors, Business houses, Consultants, Engineers, University graduates and generally to everyone who have once been a former student of Suu National Secondary School, to consider the call of purchasing a single roofing iron, as a way forward, to address the schools much needed roofing issue.

In a post on Ex Suu Students Forum on facebook, Mr Wiseka is quoted saying;

'You lukim seleva ontop roofing lo somefala house oketa paintim black nao. Ating copper ya blo taem you school lo Su'u yet. Why Not each one payem at least 1 or 2 piece of aluminum roofing for iumi replacem oketa ya.
HEM NAO CRY & APPEAL BLO OUR MOTHER SCHOOL. PLEASE LETS DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS PLEASE..Takio Tumas!'

A quote that is largely emotionally charged, (and understandably so) given the number of years, these classrooms have survived and served Malaita, without a proper change in repair to its classrooms roofing iron issue. It is indeed high time, that the call for Suu National Secondary Schools classroom iron roofing situation is prioritised and addressed.

As much as this has been a challenge, Suu National Secondary Schools, track record of alumni's, has fielded Solomon Islands with some of the best students in the system who have gone off to become great scholars, Politicians, Leaders, Lawyers, Docters, Engineers and have become influential leading figures in many other professional professions, for that matter, in the country and abroad.

The call for the purchase of a single roofing Iron sheet by each Ex Students of Su'u, is definitely a call that is worth taking up and it most certainly will, begin the process for fielding roofing irons, for Suu National Secondary Schools classrooms much needed repair of it's old iron roofs.

This will ultimately give a positive uplift to the schools infrastructural face and also give a positive impact and outlook, that will help keep the school functional, impactful and inspirational to the next generation indeed. A call worth addressing indeed by all Ex students of Su'u National Secondary School.