COLOMBO : Under the sponsorship of Dubai-based Saeeda Foundation, the foundation will be laid by former provincial councillor Nawzer Fowzie for the construction of a four-storied building at a cost of Rs 100 million for Khairiya Girls College on Sunday , March 17
In a statement to the press , Khairiya Girls College Principal Nazeera Assanar said it’s a dream became reality with the magnanimity of Fowzie who came to build these 20 classrooms to accommodate 700 children in the primary school.
“Educating a girl is like educating the community”. We, at Khairiya Girls’ College have increased the learning opportunities of Muslim girls with Allah SWTs grace, and the continuous support of generous donors.
Khairiya Girls’ College is a well-established Muslim girls school in Colombo, providing learning opportunities to a student population of more than 2700. Alhamdulillah, with Allah SWTs blessings, our school has continuously produced good results, while many qualifying to enter the local national universities.
The school operates in three locations, two at 166, Dematagoda Road, Colombo and the primary section at No. 237, Sri Dhamma Mawatha, Colombo 10.
As you are aware Colombo-09 and Colombo-10 are highly populated areas, more than 2000 Muslim families live in this area. Khairiya Girls’ College is the only recognized accessible government school for the girls living in the area. Before 2009 we had to conduct school in two sessions morning and evening as a solution to this space issue.
As a tentative solution to the space problem, few primary classes of Khairiya Girls’ College were taken to the No. 237, Sri Dhamma Mawatha, Colombo 10 in 2009. Later, with the support of MPs, provincial council members and the Zonal Education Office, a 40 perch land was gifted to Khairiya Girls’ College from the land of adjoining school. An agreement was made with the school community at that time for sharing their land to construct two temporary sheds until new classrooms are constructed in the gifted land plot. The initial agreement was effective till 31st of December 2021.
Until 21st August 2020, our young Khairiyans were in temporary sheds facing so many difficulties than the administrative problems we had to go through with the other party for negotiation. The students and teachers there had to bear the extreme heat radiation due to metallic roofing sheets during daytime and they also had to flock together to prevent their books getting wet in times of heavy rain.
With the generous contribution of Al-Hima Foundation, Kuwait, we could construct a two storied building with 8 classrooms, and with the support of World Meamon Organization, we could construct the second floor of the same building with another four classrooms.
Still four of our primary classes are in a temporary shed constructed in the land of other school. They were requesting us continuously to evacuate the place as they wanted the remaining classrooms. We had to attend so many official discussions held at Ministry of Education, Provincial Office and the Zonal Office. We had to speak to every single person through which we thought this issue can be sorted out. We were even searching for a temporary place to take our little Khairiyans as the other school has officially informed us to handover the classes by 30th June 2024, through the Zonal Department of Education.
With the intention of finding a philanthropist, we have got a building plan designed and drawn for a G+3 structure. We have got the formal approval for the construction too. The proposed building contains 20 classrooms which could accommodate approximately 700 of our deserving primary section children, so that we can shift our entire primary section to that location.
