Field Note

Plaster, Paint, Lights, Fans and Bathrooms Given By U.S. Aid Revive Basrah School

By Ben Barber
Basrah-School
21 September 2003

BASRAH, Iraq - Sajad Jawad Eqbal, 9, smiled as he watched Iraqi workmen hauling buckets of mud up on a ladder to fix the roof that had leaked all last year, canceling school day after day last year.

A U.S. foreign aid program has paid for the repair of the roof his Al Aqad Al Fareed school in old Basrah, located along a canal that for centuries allowed traders to ship goods imported from the Persian Gulf.

"The school was in a very bad condition," said Sajad's mother, who would not be photographed without permission of her husband, a sailor, who was away from their home.

"Now it will be easy for my son to go there - before it was too difficult."

Sajad's mother proudly said her son, as well as two older daughters, all scored at the top of their classes because she worked with them at home to complete their studies and make up for the crumbling schools they attended.

The American help was provided by the U.S. Agency for International Development which supplied the $91,000 to fix the school to Research Triangle Institute (RTI) of Virginia, a development agency.

RTI has decided to help repair the worst schools in Basrah, Iraq's second largest city with nearly two million people. Repairs include new tiles, paint, ceilings, toilets, bathrooms, water tanks, pipes, air conditioning for the administration and fans for the students.

The RTI contracts to fix the school include six months costs for a security officer to assure that looters do not try to rob the new equipment.

Research Triangle Institute


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