Bat Infestation Forces Kamalo JHS to Abandon Oil-Money Classroom Block Built in 2021
- A three-unit classroom block in the Eastern Region was abandoned after bats occupied the roofless structure
- The headmaster and one other teacher now conduct lessons for 197 pupils across all levels in a temporary open-sided pavilion
- A PIAC inspection team raised concerns about the abandoned facility, which was built with petroleum revenue funds
A newly built classroom block at Kamalo D/A Junior High School in the Kwahu Afram Plains North District of the Eastern Region has been left empty after a bat infestation rendered it unfit for use, forcing nearly 200 pupils to learn in a makeshift open-sided structure.
The three-unit block was completed in 2021 using petroleum revenue funds channelled through the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA).
Source: Getty Images
However, the absence of a ceiling allowed bats to colonise the roof space, with the animals depositing droppings across the classrooms each night and producing a stench that made the environment untenable for pupils and staff.
Headmaster Samuel Offei told the Daily Graphic that the school initially made use of the block but was forced to vacate it towards the end of 2024 after conditions deteriorated beyond what was manageable.
"The learners and teachers wanted to use the facility, but the bat infestation made it impossible. Every morning, the classrooms were littered with droppings and the stench was unbearable."
Classes have since been moved to a three-unit open-sided pavilion erected by former Afram Plains North Member of Parliament Betty Krosbi Mensah.
The space is shared by pupils from kindergarten through to junior high school level, requiring different year groups to be combined and placing significant strain on the two teachers responsible for the entire school.
The school serves approximately 197 pupils, including children from the nearby communities of Richard Kope and Sokpe, each roughly four kilometres from Kamalo.
Concerns about facility raised by PIAC
The situation came to public attention during a site inspection by the Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC), which visited the school as part of a broader six-day monitoring exercise covering petroleum-funded projects across the Eastern, Volta and Oti regions.
Three PIAC teams operated simultaneously across the Kwahu Afram Plains North and South, Ketu North and South, and Biakoye and Jasikan districts, with officials from the relevant metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies accompanying each team.
After inspecting both the abandoned block and the temporary learning structure, committee members expressed concern that a facility built with public funds had been left to deteriorate without remedial action.
PIAC said the development highlighted the need for urgent maintenance works to make the classroom block usable again and called for steps to address the school's critical teacher shortage.
Source: YEN.com.gh
