Belola, Bobonaro District, Timor-Leste

2018 – US$55,000 3 Classroom and Teachers’ Room School Building, 5 Toilets, Playground, Water Connection and School Garden

Belola is a small village outside Balibo. The village’s school was destroyed by Indonesian backed militia in 1999. The closest school for Belola’s 150 children was 5km away and had no water source, which meant that children from Balibo had to not only manage the one hour walk each way, but also carry a 5 litre container of water with them. This journey was too hard and dangerous for many of the children, particularly the young ones which meant that many of children in Belola and nearby hamlets simply did not go to school.

In 2018 The Balibo House Trust, Rotary and Spend it Well collaborated to build a school for Prep to Year 2 children in Belola village. The school cost US$55,000 and has 3 classrooms, a teachers’ room, 5 toilets, a water tank and a playground.   There is also a flourishing school garden program operating at Belola which provides fresh fruit and vegetables for the children’s school lunches, with any surplus being given to families.