A community’s three-year-old dream is finally taking shape as construction begins on a new early childhood development centre at Kyeracan in the Zambezi region.
The centre is being built partially with 15 000 bricks residents moulded themselves.
The groundbreaking ceremony for the centre will take place on Tuesday, with the project implemented in partnership with Atenu Developments and funded by the Palms for Life Fund.
Members of the Kyeracan community moulded the bricks about three years ago in the hope of one day building an early childhood development (ECD) centre for their children.
Following an assessment, Atenu confirmed the bricks are structurally suitable for the centre’s kitchen, a statement issued on Monday reads.
It says a donation agreement will be signed with the ECD parents group to formalise the handover.
Land clearance has already started, with 12 community members involved in preparing the site.
Palms for Life Fund founder and executive director Hannah Laufer-Rottman says the centre will benefit generations of children.
“The community of Kyeracan will soon be equipped with a state-of-the-art ECD centre. We are proud to be part of such a historical moment,” she says.
Once completed, the centre will accommodate 60 children, providing early education and daily nutritious meals in a safe environment.
Local teachers are also being enrolled in the Palms for Life’s early childhood teacher training programme, run with Montessori and Development Aid from the People to People college.
The Kyeracan project forms part of Palms for Life’s wider social development programme supporting education, food security and basic services among marginalised San communities in Namibia.
