About the Olympic Primary School
The Olympic Primary School is a government run school for grades 1 - 8 and was established in 1980. It is located in the Kibera slum district, in Nairobi, Kenya. Because of its reputation for hard work and strong academic performance, it has grown to become the largest public primary school throughout East and Central Africa with a student population of over 4000. The school is terribly underfunded by the government, they receive less than $15 per student, per year to run the school and cover all operating expenses. With approximately 40 teachers on staff (including volunteers), class sizes average about 100 students per teacher.
RGI Projects Completed at Olympic Primary School
2006
- Set up new library shelving and reading area
- School supplies
2007
- School supplies
2008
- 25 classrooms refurbished with new teaching boards
- 50 kgs of school supplies
2009
- 10 classrooms refurbished with new teaching boards
- 7 classrooms with new cement floors
- Exterior repainting of the school
- 50 kgs of school supplies
2010
- 1000 soccer uniforms and soccer equipment donated by Cumberland United Soccer Club - Transportation provided by Maritime Ontario (Randy Wood) and Swiss Cargo International (Paul Keery)
- Construction of new cement walkways to connect classrooms
- 50kgs of school supplies
2011
- 140 pairs of Bata Safari boots delivered to Maasai school kids near Amboselli. This school is supported by Gamewatchers Safaris who own the Amboselli Porini Camp. Since Gamewatchers Safaris is an important sponsor of the RGI through the donation of a safari for our silent auction, this school project was our way of contributing to their corporate social responsibility objectives.
- 85 kgs of school supplies to Olympic Primary School
2012
- Construction of new cement walkways to connect all classrooms and alleviate mud problems during the rainy season
- Appreciation salary paid to 15 volunteer teachers
- 80 kgs of school supplies
2013
- 3 blocks of classrooms - new roofing and windows, new blackboards and the walls were all re-plastered and painted.
- Appreciation salary paid to 16 volunteer teachers
- 80 kgs of school supplies
2014
- Appreciation salary paid to 13 volunteer teachers
- Construction of 20 new school desks
- Complete retrofit of the toilet block: new plumbing, new water tanks, new toilets, new roof, new windows, new cement floor
- New doors on the 38 cubicles were installed and the entire toilet block was plastered and painted
- 60 kgs of school supplies delivered
- Building of new kitchen for rural school in Ol Kinyei conservancy. This is a Maasai primary school sponsored by Gamewatchers Safaris who own Mara Porini Camp, located in this conservancy. Since Gamewatcher Safaris is an important benefactor of the RGI through the donation of a safari for our silent auction, this school project was our way of contributing to their corporate social responsibility objectives.
2015
- New roofing, windows, paint for 8 classrooms
- Construction of 20 new school desks
- Safety wall around school campus was repaired and reinforced
- 100 kgs. of school supplies delivered
- Financial contribution to Gamewatchers Bursary Program for Maasai children attending rural school
2016
- New roof & windows: cyber room for the scholarship students on the campus of the Olympic School
- New roofing & windows for 8 more classrooms, including eaves troughs to harvest rain water
- Construction of 56 new school desks
- 50 kgs of school supplies delivered
2017
- New roofing and eaves troughs for 9 classrooms
- 4 large water tanks connected to eaves troughs to harvest rain water
- Installation of more water taps to increase kids’ access to water on campus
- New cooker lids for kitchen
- Construction of 120 new school desks
- 80 kgs of school supplies delivered
- Financial contribution to Gamewatchers Safaris for building of latrines at the rural Maasai school that the company supports in the OL Kinyei conservancy
2018
- New terrazzo flooring in 8 classrooms
- New terrazzo flooring for 2 exterior walkways connecting blocks of classrooms
- Complete retrofit of a grade 4 classroom: roof, ceiling, teaching boards, painting
- 100 chairs for the library and for the teachers / kitchen staff
- Construction of 80 new school desks
- New shelving in the cyber/study room for the scholarship students
- Purchase of scientific calculators for the scholarship students
- 70 kgs of school supplies delivered
- Financial contribution to Gamewatchers Bursary Program for Maasai children attending rural school
2019
Thanks to our incredible onsite partners, Fredricks and Eunice, we completed many essential projects at the Olympic school:
A. 49 brand new school desks were built thanks to a bunch of generous sponsors. When will we have enough??? NEVER! We accept desk orders all year-round.
B. Two of the grade 2 classrooms that received a total makeover last year were converted to LED lighting - to brighten the learning experience of these kids and reduce energy costs - electricity is so expensive. The conversion to LED lighting will continue to be rolled out to all classrooms over the next few years - as funds allow it to happen.
C. One grade 4 classroom received a new roof - no more nasty leaks for these 100 kids.
D. Three grade 8 classrooms were identified as a critical priority for a total makeover: new terrazzo flooring, new teaching boards, fresh paint and LED lighting.
E. We organized 3 food distribution events for our 32 scholarship kids and their families as a lifeline during these unprecedented tough times in the Kibera slums.
F. Our star scholarship student who graduated last December started university in October - thanks to her most generous sponsors and a subsidy from the RGI. This is a moment of great pride and satisfaction for us!
G. This year, we are keeping a reserve in the bank for unforeseen emergencies. For example, two of our scholarship families lost everything when their houses burned to the ground this fall. The RGI reserve with the assistance of the scholarship sponsors helped the families resettle with some basic home essentials and clothes.
While our projects are intended to benefit the students and teachers at Olympic, the spin-off's are considerable: carpenters and sign makers were employed to build the school desks and dozens of parents were gainfully employed at various stages of our projects - a blessing for them as they all struggle to support their families during the pandemic.