Solomon Islands students changing behaviours after learning about hazards at school

Above: Project partners that participated in the joint monitoring trip, along with teachers at one of the schools in Makira. Photo: World Vision Solomon Islands

Primary students at Laulana School in Malaita Province, Solomon Islands, love to play by the river. When the nearby Rade River nearby is flooding, for the kids, it is the best time for them to enjoy swimming.

They love to explore everything and anything as part of growing up. But they don’t see the risks and are too young to figure them out. Because of this, children are particularly vulnerable to natural hazards, and women and children are 14 times more likely to die or be injured during disasters.

Thanks to the work of partners in the Australian Humanitarian Partnership’s Disaster READY program in Solomon Islands, supported by the Australian Government, nearly 900 school children have a better understanding of risks and hazards.

The “Champions of Tomorrow Project” under Disaster READY, jointly implemented by World Vision Solomon Islands and Save the Children, aims to reduce disaster risks and increase climate change resilience in eight schools.

Since the program began in July 2019, AHP partners have seen changes in the schools that have been involved.

Back at Laulana School, students now know the risks of swimming in the river during floods.

“Our students were always happy to play by the river during flooding. If there was flooding after school, the children would swim right up until the afternoons before heading home,” said Deputy Principal Lilian Sukulu Ete.

“Students now know the risks related to flooding. They have started to avoid going by the river or swimming during heavy rains. This was after Save the Children implemented the project in our school and I thank them for choosing Laulana to be part of this project,” she said.

Mrs Sukulu Ete spoke during the recent cross-learning monitoring visit by Save the Children and World Vision together with their partners, to follow up on the progress of the project and assess its results.

Peter Osikona, a Form Five student, told the monitoring team that the project taught him knowledge that would help for a lifetime.

“We learnt the risks of disasters and also what to do during disasters. We also know the right authorities to listen to during disasters and the importance of taking heed of the warnings from the Solomon Islands Meteorological Services especially during cyclones,” he said.

Assistant Head Girl for St. John Dala Community High School, Corrine Ruinasango, said evacuation drills enabled students to learn important lessons, such as where to run to and what to do in an event of earthquake.

School Head Boy of St. John Dala, Roderick Ian Falekwai, said he thought all schools in the country should be included in such programs.

The participating schools now have disaster committees that are very active, including student and community representatives, as well as students with disabilities. The schools are looking at their infrastructure, such as footpaths, to improve accessibility as part of their disaster preparation work.  

Along with World Vision and Save the Children staff, project partners that joined the monitoring trip included representatives from the Ministry for Education and Malaita and Makira Education Authorities, Makira and Malaita Provincial Disaster Management Offices (PDMO), Solomon Islands Meteorological Services, People with Disabilities (PwD), Provincial Health Promotion and Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) in Kirakira and Kilufi.