By BONIFACE AKARAH

What was once a symbol of educational neglect is now becoming a place of hope, dignity and renewed purpose as the Okey Anueyiagu Foundation delivers fully built, furnished and functional elementary schools for pupils in parts of Anambra State.

The intervention was disclosed by the Foundation in a statement and accompanying video documenting a recent visit by its team, led by founder Okey Anueyiagu, to one of the newly completed schools, where pupils were seen learning in well-equipped classrooms with proper roofing, desks, water supply and sanitation facilities.

Before the construction of the new school blocks, many of the children were forced to learn under trees and inside dilapidated structures, often exposed to harsh weather conditions and without access to toilets, clean water or basic learning materials.

“Learning for these children used to mean sitting under leaking roofs or open skies, with no desks, no toilets and no sense of safety,” the Foundation said, describing the previous conditions as “unfit for human dignity.”

Beyond physical infrastructure, the Foundation said its work extends to strengthening the quality of education through extra-curricular programmes and training support for teachers, aimed at improving classroom delivery and student engagement.

“We did not stop at building classrooms,” the statement noted. “We also began supporting teachers with tools and guidance to better understand the mechanics of teaching young learners.”

According to the Foundation, its focus on elementary education is deliberate, driven by the belief that early intervention is critical to reversing the long-term decline in educational standards across Igbo land.

“Once you capture the children early, you slow the decay that has become the bane of our educational system,” the Foundation stated, adding that while its efforts may seem modest, they are impactful.

The organisation revealed plans to expand the initiative to more towns across Anambra State, with a long-term target of delivering over 1,000 classrooms within the next ten years.

The Foundation also clarified that its activities are solely funded by its founder, Okey Anueyiagu, whose commitment to philanthropy, it said, was sparked by a growing awareness of societal neglect and systemic failure, particularly in public education.

“We must not allow our children to live worse than animals — studying under trees and defecating in bushes,” the statement said, calling on individuals and institutions to recognise education as a shared responsibility.

In an era marked by excessive material pursuit, the Foundation stressed that everyday decisions, both big and small, can still produce lasting change, urging more citizens to invest in the moral and educational future of the next generation.