Pageant News

We have received a message from Mr Bakary Gitteh, the headmaster of Bakalarr School. He writes :-
"I am pleased to inform you that our school (Bakalarr Basic Cycle School) is again hosting the inter school sport competition which started last Sunday, 27 May and will end next Sunday. It is not our turn to host but because of our facilities that is why we are hosting it again.
This is because of the good job you have done in the school such as toilets, basket and volley ball lawn and the buildings etc. On this note I thank you very much and may God give you good health and long life and a success in your efforts in helping Gambian people. We are proud of you. NB: Seven schools including Bakalarr are there."
Bakalarr is the first school Pageant became associated with in The Gambia. We have helped them in many ways (see list of our projects there), but most relevant to the above news was the provision of new toilets and a multi-purpose court for basketball, volleyball, tennis and badminton. Pageant would not have achieved so much at this school without the dedication and enthusiasm of Mr Gitteh.

Pageant mainly works to support education in The Gambia at a school or community level, but individuals have a chance to help Gambian students on a one-to-one basis with the Pageant sponsorship scheme. Pageant is delighted to announce that we have just arranged sponsorship for our 200th student.
Twins reunited
One of Pageant’s most moving sponsorship successes involved a pair of twins. Their family could not afford to feed and clothe them, let alone send them to school. So they were sent off to other parts of their extended family, separated not only from their home and parents, but also from each other. Sponsorship enabled the family to get back together again, with the twins back at home and in the same school. The picture shows Sanna & Sainey just after they were reunited with each other and their parents. Read more stories of how sponsorship has changed the lives of people in The Gambia.
Why sponsorship is needed
In The Gambia, primary education is free, in that the state provides the schools and teachers. Students’ families must pay for books, food, uniform and travel. In secondary and further education, students must also pay fees for classes. Also, there is no state provision for nursery education, so parents must pay the full costs. Sponsorship under Pageant’s scheme starts at £80 per year for nursery and primary children, ranging up to £120 for A level students, and all of this goes to the student. More information.
We currently have 47 children and young people looking for sponsorship. Our list is constantly being updated as new children are added, mainly at the suggestion of head teachers, who really know which of their pupils are most in need. We have an enquiry page showing photos of students seeking sponsorship, with a form for you to request further information.

A new low cost, compact microscope is being developed, which will revolutionise the diagnosis of infectious diseases, such as Malaria, in developing countries.
The MHM will be rugged enough for field use, so that examination of blood and other samples can be carried out in remote rural areas, eliminating the delay caused by sending samples to a laboratory. It is a high specification instrument, with interchangeable objectives up to 100:1, standard RMS eyepieces, integral lighting and an indexing stage. Despite this, the target price in quantity production is £40.
(more details)