REFILE-In Bangladesh’s flooded plains, schools in boats keep learning afloat

(Corrects dateline to Oct 7 (not Oct 8) and removes PIX from the slug.) By Sam Jahan and Ruma Paul BHANGURA, Bangladesh, Oct 7 (Reuters) – In flood-prone regions of Bangladesh, solar-powered “floating schools” ensure children do not miss class when rising waters cut off roads and villages. One of them is 10-year-old Safikul Islam. Each morning, he waits on the edge of his flooded village in Bhangura, western Bangladesh, for the solar-powered classroom that sails right to his doorstep. His home lies deep in Chalan Beel, a sprawling 26-square-kilometre (10 sq miles) wetland where seasonal floods often cut off roads and submerge entire villages. But for Islam and hundreds of other children, education floats. The initiative, launched in 2002 by architect Mohammed Rezwan using $500 of his scholarship money, has grown into a nationwide model run by the non-profit Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha (SSS). Now, more than 100 boats serve as schools, libraries, and clinics. The project has educated over 22,000 students and won a UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy this year for its work. In Chalan Beel, around two dozen boats serve as classrooms, visiting riverside villages six days a week. The school boats are made of local timber and are equipped with benches, blackboards, and bookshelves. Solar panels power lights and computers. “Right now, we have 2,240 pupils enrolled in 26 boat schools,” said Madhusudan Karmaker, a senior manager at SSS. “Over 22,500 students have graduated so far, and during severe floods, these boats also double as shelters for displaced families.” Other NGOs have adopted similar models for their work in the country’s wetland areas. Classes are run in three shifts a day, lasting about three hours each. Teachers navigate narrow waterways to collect students, conduct lessons in Bengali, maths, and general knowledge. “We never had the chance to study,” said parent Sufia Khatun, waiting on the riverbank for her son Islam to return. “But this boat lets my children dream of a better future.” Teacher Sakhina Khatun, who has been with SSS for over a decade, said similar floating school initiatives have since inspired projects in countries like Nigeria, Cambodia, and the Philippines. “These schools never close — not even during floods,” she said. “That’s what makes them special.” Founder Rezwan, a World Fellow at Yale University, said: “I haven't had many things during my life and these children don’t have much either. But giving them access to schooling, healthcare and seeing that replicated around the world – that gives me motivation." (Reporting by Sam Jahan in Bhangura and Ruma Paul in Dhaka; Editing by Neil Fullick)

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