‘The one thing we must help each other with is hope’
The Duchess of York, who went to Sierra Leone last week as part of her appeal to improve schools in some of the poorest countries in the world, talks to Grazia about the importance of educating children
On a putrid pile of rubbish in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, two young boys sift through the smoking mound, searching for plastic bottles. Once they have collected as many as they can carry, they try and sell the lot for 10 pence a bundle.
Their plight strikes a chord with Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, who is visiting the area as a founder patron of the charity Street Child – which works to create educational opportunities for the world’s most vulnerable children. The duchess is here to launch the charity’s Schools for Tomorrow pledge to build or advance 1,000 rural schools over five years.
The boys, Musa, 15, and Ousman, 12, tell her they can’t afford to go to school very often because they need to work to bring home money for their families. Ousman explains he would like to be a lawyer one day.
‘He had his chin down and his shoulders hunched,’ says the duchess. ‘I pulled his chin up, looked in his eyes, and I said, “You stand tall now because your parents will be so proud of you. We will make your dream happen for you.”’
The Schools for Tomorrow project is part of the charity’s Count Me In appeal to provide school resources and improve standards and access. Public donations of up to £2 million will be matched by our Government until 21 February. This means that for a donation of £30, Street Child would be able to fund the school fees, uniform and learning materials for both boys to go to school for a year.
The campaign shines a light on the fact that there are still 121 million children around the world not in education – including more than 230,000 in Sierra Leone who don’t attend school regularly.
‘I realised, on leaving, that the one thing we must all try and help each other with is hope,’ says the duchess. ‘Ousman has given me more strength to carry on with my day thinking how lucky I am… In fact, my father also brought me up with a sense of understanding of how lucky I’ve been.’
The duchess chose to work with Street Child because she believes the best way to support a country is to help build their primary education system, as this is ‘key’ for setting up a child for the future.
‘ When I come back to England after these trips I’m quite vocal on trolling and cyberbullying because I think, gosh, you waste your time being hateful and rude about other people when there’s a little boy fighting for his life just to be educated in Africa. It puts everything in perspective for me.’ Her daughters, Princess Beatrice, 30, and Princess Eugenie, 28, are both ambassadors for Street Child too, but their full-time jobs meant they couldn’t join the duchess on the trip this time.
Rather like their mother, who has been active in charity work for the past 40 years, volunteering has become a big part of their lives. ‘ Their 18th birthday presents were a trip to a teenage cancer ward in England in order to show them that they’re 18 and these young adults in the teenage cancer unit would love to have a moment of celebrating their 18th birthday. I think it’s taught them a sense of understanding. I think my girls are extraordinary examples of strength and courage.’ Donate to Street Child’s Count Me In campaign before 21 February and any public donations will be matched by the Government. For further information, visit street-child.co.uk