✨ Sunshine in Nosy Komba 2025 Newsletter #5 ✨

Dear Kombas supporters,

We’re excited to share with you a new edition of our Sunshine in Nosy Komba newsletter! 🌞

In this newsletter we want to share with you:

• SNK team trip remaining objectives 2025 and more

  • Solar panels at the new maternity in Antamotamo

  • 12 laptops for university

  • Entrepreneurship programme

  • Ceremony

  • Books distribution

  • Starlink Installed at Ecole Banana

  • One laptop per Child back!

  • Mediateque refurbishment

  • SNK Trip 2025 Objectives fulfilled!

    
    

• News from the field:

  • New year started

In the next newsletter, we will give more updates from the field!

🎉📚 Back to School at École Banana – A Bright Beginning! 🌞👩‍🏫

Today marked a joyful return to learning as École Banana welcomed students back for a brand-new school year! The courtyard was filled with excitement, laughter, and the vibrant color of our school spirit—every child proudly dressed in the signature uniform of École Banana. 💛👕👧🏽👦🏾

✨ A Warm Welcome from the Director

Our school director opened the day with an inspiring presentation, reminding students, teachers, and families of the power of education, community, and imagination. Her words set the tone for a year filled with growth, creativity, and shared discovery.

🌱 A Space to Thrive

From the youngest kindergartners to our secondary students, everyone stepped into their classrooms ready to explore, learn, and dream big. in the Médiathèque, refreshed learning spaces, and a strong sense of unity, the energy was electric.

📸 Smiles, hugs, and high-fives filled the air—this is more than just a school, it’s a family.

Here’s to a year of curiosity, courage, and connection. Let the learning begin! 🚀

🛶⚡ Bringing Solar Power to Antamotamo – By Boat and By Hand! 👷‍♀️🌞

This week, the Sunshine in Nosy Komba team, together with our dedicated local interns, made the journey by boat to the remote village of Antamotamo — carrying with them solar panels, lights, and tools to upgrade the maternity and health center we helped launch last year. 👶🏽🌿

Once on site, the team got straight to work:

• 🔧 Mounted new solar panels on the roof

• 💡 Installed indoor lighting throughout the building

• 🤝 Worked side by side — sharing knowledge, skills, and purpose

Thanks to this joint effort, the maternity center now has sustainable, reliable electricity to provide safer, more dignified care for mothers and babies — day and night.

⚡ It’s another powerful step forward in community-led health care, powered by collaboration and commitment.

💻🎁 12 Laptops Delivered to University Students! 🎁💻

This week, our team brought 12 newly restored laptops to Nosy Komba — ready to be delivered to university students supported through our Rise & Shine Scholarship Programme. 🎓🌍

These laptops were sponsored by Sunshine in Nosy Komba and provided by Betuwe Wereldwijd, a non-profit foundation founded in 1987 and part of the Tools4Change network. For over 35 years, Betuwe Wereldwijd has been turning used equipment into valuable resources for communities worldwide.

They don’t just refurbish computers — they also restore and donate:

• 🧵 Over 300 sewing and knitting machines

• 🚲 Nearly 140 bicycles

• 🔧 More than 200 sets of tools

• 💻 And over 100 computers like the ones we received

Their work helps create opportunities, promote sustainability, and support development in education, entrepreneurship, and daily life.

A huge thank you to the entire Betuwe Wereldwijd (https://www.betuwewereldwijd.nl/about-us) team for helping us give our students the digital tools they need to thrive!

Volunteers work:

• 🔖 Labelling each laptop

• 📋 Creating an inventory

• 🧰 Installing essential software

• 📦 Getting everything ready for the students

For many scholarship recipients, this will be their first personal laptop — a gateway to learning, connection, and growth.

💡 Education today is about more than classrooms — it’s about access to technology, skills, and new possibilities that can change lives.

🚀👩‍💼 Entrepreneurship Programme – Turning Education into Action! 🧑‍💼🌱

As more of our students succeed through the Rise & Shine Scholarship Programme, a new challenge has emerged: how to help these talented, educated young people stay, thrive, and build a future right here in Nosy Komba.

🎓 Since 2015, the Rise & Shine programme has supported nearly 80 students — with over 30 now in university. But despite their success, local job opportunities remain scarce. That’s why we’re taking the next step.

✨ This week, our team met with students who submitted business proposals for the launch of our pilot Entrepreneurship Programme.

The goal? To support 1–2 university graduates with funding, mentorship, and practical tools to start their own businesses on the island.

We believe the key to sustainable development lies in closing the cycle — making sure that education doesn’t end with a diploma, but opens the door to meaningful opportunities within the community:

➡️ From quality education – through programs like École Banana and Rise & Shine, students access strong foundations, national exam success, and the chance to pursue high school and university.

➡️ To local opportunity – with real-world tools like vocational training, internships, and now the Entrepreneurship Programme, we support students in transforming knowledge into projects that meet real local needs.

➡️ To reinvestment in the community – when students come back to start businesses, mentor younger kids, run essential spaces like the cybercafé, or launch new services, they break the cycle of dependence and create long-term, local impact.

🌍 This is how we move from education for the community to education by the community — building a future where Nosy Komba grows with its own strength, creativity, and resilience.

🧡 Because it’s not just about creating jobs — it’s about giving young people a real chance to build a life at home, stay connected to their roots, and help shape a stronger, more self-reliant future for Nosy Komba.

🌟 Rise & Shine Scholarship Ceremony – A Celebration of Community and Future at École Banana 🌟

École Banana came alive this week as the entire village gathered for the annual Rise & Shine Scholarship ceremony, supported by the Sunshine in Nosy Komba Foundation. Students returned from their studies to help build the stage, decorate the school, and prepare for the big day — transforming the sports field into a space filled with pride, tradition, and hope.

Local authorities, ministry representatives, families, and the SNK team joined together to honor this year’s scholarship recipients. Each year the group performed traditional dances, joined by teachers and SNK volunteers who trained alongside them. Former scholarship students now in university returned to dance with the new generation — a powerful symbol of continuity and growth.

After the official ceremony, the celebration continued with a shared dinner and dancing under Madagascar’s star-filled sky. It was a night of joy, connection, and belief in education as a force for change.

Behind every signed contract is a story — of dreams, effort, and a community that invests in its future. This is what development looks like when it’s rooted in local pride and shared purpose.

🙏 A special thank you to the sponsors and godparents whose support makes the Rise & Shine journey possible. Your belief in these students is the quiet force behind every step forward.

📚📦 Schoolbook Distribution Continues in 2025 📦📚

Supporting education across Nosy Komba, one book at a time.

Continuing from previous years, this project strengthens our collaboration with nearby villages and schools — helping more children access learning materials and opportunities. 🎓🇲🇬

This week, we visited three primary schools to deliver new books, check on past distributions, and reconnect with communities:

📍 Anpassiumbe village Primary School

• ✅ Delivered 50 new French practice books ✅ We were received by the teachers, parents and chef du village.

📍 Andrekareka village

• ✅ Checked on last year’s books

• ✅ They’ve been used — and impressively well cared for!

📍 Anjiabe village Primary School

• ✅ Follow-up on last year’s delivery

• ✅ Distributed another 50 books

• ✅ Warm welcome from students, teachers, and families 🥰

📘 Every book is printed locally at the Cyber Café in the village of the École Banana — keeping the process community-based and sustainable.

We’re proud to keep this project going, and grateful for the connections it continues to build across Nosy Komba.

🚀 Starlink Installed at École Banana — Internet Is Live! 🌐

Connecting school, students, teachers, expanding access.

We’ve successfully installed Starlink at École Banana — and it’s up and running! With this new setup, several teachers now have reliable internet access at their homes and workspaces.

📡 What this means:

• ✅ Fast, stable internet connection in a remote area

• ✅ Teachers can now access online resources, training, and communication tools

• ✅ Better support for planning lessons, staying informed, and connecting with others

This upgrade is a big step forward for digital access and professional development. In places where connectivity is limited, Starlink opens new doors — not just for education, but for opportunity.

💻🌍 One Laptop Per Child – Lighting Up Learning in Nosy Komba Again! 🌱📘

Several years ago, the island of Nosy Komba witnessed a quiet revolution in education. Through the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative, École Banana received child-friendly laptops that transformed the classroom experience for many students.

🚀 What Is OLPC?

Launched by MIT in 2005, OLPC aimed to provide rugged, low-cost laptops to children in developing countries. These devices were built for learning—with intuitive interfaces, long battery life, and the Sugar software suite designed to spark curiosity and creativity.

📚 Impact at École Banana

• The laptops were used at school, creating a structured and safe digital learning environment.

• Students engaged in writing, drawing, storytelling, math games, and science simulations—all tailored to their age and language.

• Teachers integrated laptops into lessons, helping students develop digital literacy alongside traditional subjects.

🌟 A New Kind of Classroom

For many children, this was their first encounter with technology. The laptops became windows to the world—tools for exploration, imagination, and collaboration. Even without internet access, the devices offered rich educational content and interactive learning.

👩‍🏫 Supported by Community and Partners

The XOs were brought by French volunteers in 2009. They were deployed in association between OLPC France (French grassroots of the US foundation) and the Paris volunteers from We Work It Works (French branch) and G du Cœur (solidarity association from Paris School of Business "PSB", Jonathan's and camarades' school).

This collective effort, supported by the local community and international partners, made the project possible and sustainable.

🧠 Why It Matters

In a place where resources are limited, OLPC showed that innovation doesn’t need to be expensive—it needs to be thoughtful. By keeping the laptops at school, École Banana created a shared space where learning was equitable, guided, and joyful.

🔗 Relaunching the Spark

This year, the Sunshinein Nosy Komba Team relaunched the initiative, checking the status of the laptops and fixing those with issues. Kids were immediately drawn back in—eager to learn, explore, and create once again.

📚🎨 Refreshing the Médiathèque – A Space to Learn, Imagine, and Grow! 🎨📚🌞

École Banana has Médiathèque for little ones but also for grown ups. The place where students—kindergarten, primary, and secondary— have valuable access to books, educational resources, and learning tools.

🎁 New Materials Every Year Each year, thanks to generous donations from Europe, we bring new books, toys, and educational materials. These gifts help keep learning exciting and give students access to tools they wouldn’t otherwise have.

The mediatheque plays a crucial role in improving education. It contributes to:

• Promoting literacy among young people

• Supporting learning with adapted resources

• Developing language and educational skills

• Creating a space for study and discovery ♻️

🌞📍 Sunshine in Nosy Komba Volunteer Trip 2025 – Key Objectives Achieved 📍🌞

Our team in Nosy Komba managed to do everything in our objectives and even more (as you saw in the last newsletter and in this new one):

• 🎓 Scholarships – Host the ceremony, talk with students, wait for BAC results, and visit the university with students

• 🏫 New School Building – Support and monitor construction progress of the new building at École Banana

• 🔋 Equip 2nd Maternity – Install solar panels, batteries, and provide autonomous electricity for the maternity in Antamotamo

• 👩‍🏫 Teacher Training – Co-lead sessions and plan the next phase of our education program

• 🌐 Internet at the Cyber – Launch the new internet connection and support digital access training for students and teachers

• 📚 Books Distribution – Deliver French workbooks and follow up with partner schools

• 💡 Entrepreneurship Programme Pilot – Launch and guide the first student-led business projects

 Stay Connected with Sunshine in Nosy Komba!  

Sunshine in Nosy Komba is dedicated to improving education, healthcare, and sustainable development on Nosy Komba island. Every euro raised is directly invested in these vital projects, ensuring transparency and impact.  

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