A secondary school in Wellington has raised hundreds of pounds for a project in one of the poorest countries in the world, writes Phil Hill.
The annual Madagascar Week at Court Fields School made £675, bringing to £50,000 the total amount raised since the initiative was launched at the school in 2012.
The cash goes towards the Madagascar Development Fund, a non-profit organisation dedicated to improving the lives of people in the African country.
The money was donated as part of a non-uniform day, cake sales and a raffle.
The fund is used to construct schools, provide access to clean water and establishing basic health centres.
The Court Fields connection with the Madagascar Development Fund was established by former deputy head teacher the late Bob Stark and is now organised by Debbie Greenfield.
Head teacher Polly Matthews said: "It's fantastic that our school has such a long standing relationship with the community in Madagascar to support communities which, despite their best efforts to help themselves, are in desperate need of support."
Brian Donaldson, the founder and patron of the development fund, said: "Madagascar has seen significant social unrest and political conflict since 2009.
"Hopes for a better future were raised when a new president was elected in December 2018 and re-elected in 2024.
"However, a recent report by the World Bank stated that 81 per cent of the 31million people are still living in extreme poverty on incomes of less than $2 a day."
The United Nations Development Programme rates Madagascar as the third poorest nation in the world in terms of food insecurity ad school attendance.
