85-year-old goes to school

2005-09-14 10:28

Working away like every other pupil. (The Nation, AFP

New York - Kimani Ng'ang'a waited more than eight decades for his first day of school. The Kenyan villager wants to make sure nobody else has to wait that long.

The 85-year-old Kimani, perhaps the world's oldest elementary-school pupil, toured New York on Tuesday to promote a global campaign urging assistance for an estimated 100 million children denied an education because of poverty.

"Look what school has done for me so far," said Kimani, standing in a park with the Statue of Liberty behind him. "Here I am in New York."

As part of his visit, Kimani travelled around Manhattan in a yellow school bus to spread his message about education for needy children.

Kimani met outside the United Nations with Nane Annan, wife of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. He told her, "It would be good if all children of the world could go to school."

Annan agreed, saying, "That is the goal of the United Nations."

Some heads of state already were in New York for Wednesday's opening of a three-day UN summit.

At the UN, Kimani delivered 100 000 paper cutout figures, or buddies, representing children unable to attend school because of poverty.

The buddies were created by schoolchildren all over the world; each carries a written message of "Send my friend to school." The programme, along with the Kenyan's visit, was organised by the Global Campaign for Education - a coalition of agencies from more than 100 countries.

Kimani, a father of 15, was only able to afford schooling once Kenya's government dropped fees for primary schools. His formal education began in January 2004. He came to the United States with his principal, Jane Obinchu, who also served as his interpreter.

"I love being in school," Kimani told reporters. "I always wanted to be a veterinary doctor, because I love animals. That is my goal."

The man from a small Kenyan village is balding, with two hearing aids and a cane. He lives alone in a mud hut, and uses charcoal to start fires for cooking. On school days, he walks about 1km to the local elementary school.

"To me, liberty means going to school and learning," he said. "I want to learn more and more."

For now, he was concentrating on math, science, English and his native Swahili. When he started school, Kimani didn't know how to grip a pen; now, his principal said, he can write a few words in Swahili. He specifically wants to learn how to read the Bible.

"You are never too old to learn," said Kimani. "At no time ever say, 'It's too late to learn,' not until the day you die."

- AP