About Roughly 20 to 25 percent of youth in the country never attend primary school with 30 percent of those attending, never completing. Limited access to education and an adult literacy rate of less than 35 percent perpetuate the cycle of poverty from generation to generation. Eighty-four percent of Solomon Islanders reside in rural areas and rely on subsistence farming for their livelihoods. Access to health and other social services is very limited and the poor to non-existent access to reliable transport, electricity and telecommunications infrastructure compounds already challenging economic conditions.
With the majority of youth living in remote areas with limited educational and employment prospects, overcoming poverty is an uphill battle. Salesian missionaries provide primary and secondary education as well as technical training and workforce development to poor youth in the Solomon Islands.
In addition, missionaries provide supportive social development services to help youth meet their basic needs so they can focus on their schooling. Salesian missionaries live and work in the communities they serve so they are perfectly positioned to respond in times of crisis and ensure that aid reaches those most in need. John Bosco Primary School to educate students from first to fifth grade. The new school has six classrooms and a multipurpose room as well as three houses for school staff.
The construction project also included a cemented path, enabling children to walk free from injury to and from the buildings. The Salesian-run Don Bosco Rural Training Center in Tetere Bay is working to bring educational and workforce development opportunities to poor youth in rural areas. Programs at the center help youth gain a basic education as well as the vocational or technical skills needed to find and retain employment.
More than young men and women are enrolled at the school to learn farming and other high demand trades. Courses are offered in planting and care of crops such as rice, corn, vegetables, root crops and fruit trees, as well as basic fish farming and forestry. There are also courses in basic mechanics, carpentry, electrical work, computer skills and dressmaking.
