"I knew I was on my way to achieving my dreams"
Sophlet is fifteen and attends the only secondary school in her area. In Sukasanje, a girl getting this far through school is rare. Her presence in that classroom is already a victory. But it comes at a cost.
Most girls don't make it this far... They drop out in primary school for many reasons, none of which a young girl should have to worry about, but in Sukasanje they do. Some get married off as children, some families can't afford the fees and some cannot travel the extremely long distances to the nearest school.
When Sophlet found out she was selected to attend a secondary school, she was over the moon.
But when she talks about it now, the smile doesn't quite hold. She’s worried because she knows how fragile this chance is, and how easily it could slip away because of all the obstacles she faces daily to even get to school.
A ten-kilometre walk, before the sun rises
By 4am, Sophlet is awake. By 5am, she is walking. The road from her home to her school is ten kilometres long, and she has to be in her seat by 7:30am to make morning lessons.
Before she leaves, the chores have to be done – water is collected, the house is tidied and whatever her responsibilities are at home, taken care of.
Only then does she begin her 10 kilometre walk to school. Whether it’s in the freezing winter cold or the rainy summer months, she walks twenty kilometres a day, round trip, just to get an education. When she finally arrives, what's waiting for her is not exactly the school of her dreams.
The school at the end of the road
Sophlet’s school takes only fifty students a year from six different primary schools that each enrol a hundred children in a single class. There aren't enough classrooms... nor is there a library, laboratory or assembly hall.
The girls' toilets are ill-equipped to deal with the changes that come with adolescence. Sophlet's classmates worry about how to manage their hygiene during their periods with so few facilities to go to.
"Some students call this school Nanga Ntani? It means: what else can I do? Because it is the only secondary school in this area. Our enrolment is small because we do not have enough classrooms. We only take fifty students every year. Imagine how many students are denied secondary education because of that?" says the school's headteacher, Joyce Namoyo.
The weight she carries
Three more years of 4a.m. mornings, for Sophlet. Three more years of twenty kilometres on foot every day, of squeezing into a school that doesn't have room for half the children who need it. This is a reality that most New Zealand teens will never experience thanks to public transport and well-resourced schools in almost every neighbourhood.
Sophlet does it because she has decided her future is worth it and because she’s seen the harsh reality if she doesnt.
Without secondary education, the cycle that has held families in Sukasanje back for decades doesn't break. Girls marry young, families stay locked in subsistence farming and the next generation walks into the same struggle their mothers did.
Sophlet doesn’t want to be stuck in that cycle.
What needs to change
The local chief, Traditional Authority Phweremwe, sees it clearly.
"There are six primary schools in this area, one class with a minimum of a hundred students. This secondary school cannot take all of those students every year. We really need another secondary school in this area."
He's right. And it's not just another school that's needed. It's more classrooms, a library, a laboratory, proper toilets and learning materials in existing schools like Sophlet’s.
This is where things can shift. Because of generous sponsors like you - schools, families, and local leaders in Sukasanje are building the foundations that can change this reality. Together, we are working to ensure more schools and classrooms are built, teachers are better-resourced, and there is more support to keep girls in school long enough to follow through on chasing their dreams.
None of it happens overnight.
But every step forward is one less reason for a girl like Sophlet to give up. She’s already walked ten kilometres before most of us are out of bed. The least we can do is meet her halfway.
Sophlet is one of thousands of children in Sukasanje fighting for a future against the odds. In her community, babies are going hungry, families are travelling impossible distances for health care, and children are being pulled out of school before they get a real chance. All of that is starting to change thanks to Child Sponsorship.
Read more about Sukasanje
Most girls don't make it this far... They drop out in primary school for many reasons, none of which a young girl should have to worry about, but in Sukasanje they do. Some get married off as children, some families can't afford the fees and some cannot travel the extremely long distances to the nearest school.
When Sophlet found out she was selected to attend a secondary school, she was over the moon.
But when she talks about it now, the smile doesn't quite hold. She’s worried because she knows how fragile this chance is, and how easily it could slip away because of all the obstacles she faces daily to even get to school.
A ten-kilometre walk, before the sun rises
By 4am, Sophlet is awake. By 5am, she is walking. The road from her home to her school is ten kilometres long, and she has to be in her seat by 7:30am to make morning lessons.
Before she leaves, the chores have to be done – water is collected, the house is tidied and whatever her responsibilities are at home, taken care of.
Only then does she begin her 10 kilometre walk to school. Whether it’s in the freezing winter cold or the rainy summer months, she walks twenty kilometres a day, round trip, just to get an education. When she finally arrives, what's waiting for her is not exactly the school of her dreams.
The school at the end of the road
Sophlet’s school takes only fifty students a year from six different primary schools that each enrol a hundred children in a single class. There aren't enough classrooms... nor is there a library, laboratory or assembly hall.
The girls' toilets are ill-equipped to deal with the changes that come with adolescence. Sophlet's classmates worry about how to manage their hygiene during their periods with so few facilities to go to.
"Some students call this school Nanga Ntani? It means: what else can I do? Because it is the only secondary school in this area. Our enrolment is small because we do not have enough classrooms. We only take fifty students every year. Imagine how many students are denied secondary education because of that?" says the school's headteacher, Joyce Namoyo.
The weight she carries
Three more years of 4a.m. mornings, for Sophlet. Three more years of twenty kilometres on foot every day, of squeezing into a school that doesn't have room for half the children who need it. This is a reality that most New Zealand teens will never experience thanks to public transport and well-resourced schools in almost every neighbourhood.
Sophlet does it because she has decided her future is worth it and because she’s seen the harsh reality if she doesnt.
Without secondary education, the cycle that has held families in Sukasanje back for decades doesn't break. Girls marry young, families stay locked in subsistence farming and the next generation walks into the same struggle their mothers did.
Sophlet doesn’t want to be stuck in that cycle.
What needs to change
The local chief, Traditional Authority Phweremwe, sees it clearly.
"There are six primary schools in this area, one class with a minimum of a hundred students. This secondary school cannot take all of those students every year. We really need another secondary school in this area."
He's right. And it's not just another school that's needed. It's more classrooms, a library, a laboratory, proper toilets and learning materials in existing schools like Sophlet’s.
This is where things can shift. Because of generous sponsors like you - schools, families, and local leaders in Sukasanje are building the foundations that can change this reality. Together, we are working to ensure more schools and classrooms are built, teachers are better-resourced, and there is more support to keep girls in school long enough to follow through on chasing their dreams.
None of it happens overnight.
But every step forward is one less reason for a girl like Sophlet to give up. She’s already walked ten kilometres before most of us are out of bed. The least we can do is meet her halfway.
Sophlet is one of thousands of children in Sukasanje fighting for a future against the odds. In her community, babies are going hungry, families are travelling impossible distances for health care, and children are being pulled out of school before they get a real chance. All of that is starting to change thanks to Child Sponsorship.
Read more about Sukasanje