BAUMGARTSBRUNN - The Head of Department (HoD) of the Baumgartsbrunn Primary School Emgard Meroro says the main challenge facing the rural school is a lack of parental involvement in the school’s activities.

The HoD noted that parents within the Baumgartsbrunn community,  located 45 kilometers outside Windhoek, hardly communicate with their children on school activities.

Meroro further said that the performance of the learners at school.

The Baumgarts-brunn school is a farm school catering mainly for farm labourers’ children.

It was founded by a German resident Helmut Bleks and he donated the school to the community on June 10, 2005.

When the founder of the school passed away, the government took over the school and did a lot of renovations.

Meroro said the school has a hostel but learners walk long distances from home to school when they go home weekends.

“Another problem we have at our school is a lack of toilets – we don’t have toilets; both teachers and learners are helping themselves at the hostel even during the classes,” said the HoD.

She said there is also a lack of teachers’ accommodation facilities.

The school has 10 teachers and 210 learners.

Meanwhile, one of the community members, Erki Gariseb, says the Baumgartsbrunn community is very small, and people are dependent on their goats, cattle and donkeys but the “land is too small”.

He said the government must at least set up income-generating projects that can generate money and create employment in the community.

“I’m concerned more about the youths, there are no employment opportunities here, there’s nothing that can keep them busy, so the youths are really suffering this side,” he said.