Namanji School Library

Even if you search for Namanji on Google Earth © you won’t get any results. Of course, it’s not on any paper maps either. This small town with no paved roads is made up of farm workers, producers of corn, beans, onions, tomatoes, watermelon, and cabbage.

Namanji’s people are very shy and don’t get very many visitors. Once you talk to them, however, you find that they are friendly and welcoming. Even though they are humble, they will offer what little they have. Most have no formal education and cannot read or write. One of the most imminent needs of the community is the construction of a health clinic. When people need medical assistance they must travel more than hour. They also have no running water, so the inhabitants dig their own wells by hand.

The Namanji School Library was started by the US Peace Corps one year ago alongside the educational branch of the Nicaraguan government (MINED) and Books for Life. It is a part of the only school in town, which only reaches elementary levels. In order for students to obtain higher education levels they must travel to neighboring towns.

Seven hundred books are in the library’s collection. They also have two computers, but no internet. Samir Gutierrez, the librarian, is forced to take the computers home with him every day. Because of the lack of security at the library, if he were to leave them they would be stolen. Samir explains that the community hasn’t grasped the importance of education. On various occasions kids have thrown rocks at the library. He explains, “this only happens because parents don’t push their kids to come to school. They don’t understand how important a library is.” In Namanji there are people who have great dreams for the future. A library is many times the only fuel for such hopes. Here are some of the needs of this library:

Books

Computers

Furniture

Educational games

Video equipment