Poland to bolster African aid

Pelczynska-Nalecz in Nairobi: msz.gov.pl

Deputy Foreign Minister Katarzyna Pelczynska-Nalecz visited Kenya and Rwanda from 14 to 18 January.

In a statement released by the foreign ministry, Pelczynska-Nalecz asserted that “thanks to its active development cooperation, Poland is not an anonymous partner in East Africa.”

Poland spent 6.5 million zloty (1.5 million euro) in aid for East African states in 2012.

While in Rwanda, the deputy minister discussed plans to extend a centre for blind children which opened in the southern town of Kibeho in 2009, thanks to Polish backing.

Poland now plans to finance vocational education for children at the centre, which is run by Franciscan nuns.

“Polish taxpayers' money is being used well, helping to effectively improve the situation of the most vulnerable, like that of the blind and sight impaired children in Kibeho,” Pelczynska-Nalecz stressed.

Meanwhile, in Kenya, Poland has been training teachers at ten schools in the Mathare Valley slums of Nairobi (pictured above).

The schools were equipped with educational materials, including mobile laboratories for experiments in physics and biology, and a computer centre with internet access has been launched. (nh)