Zicht op Toekomst
Tel: +31 651404311
Zicht op Toekomst (Z.O.T) is a small Dutch charity based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The name means ‘Looking to the Future’. It was set up in 2002 to address the health and hygiene issues of Indonesian schoolchildren, but the 2004 tsunami changed all that. In the aftermath of the disaster which left 220,000 Indonesians dead or missing, Z.O.T erected a pre-fab primary school in West Aceh. It has gone on to build three more primary schools but this time in East Aceh.
One of the primary schools built by Z.O.T is run by another charity and the others are run by the government, which undertakes to staff them. Before building begins, the government undertakes to build the necessary infrastructure around them - access roads, sanitation, electricity and so on. Z.O.T uses a set budget and design for all of its builds which has proved a very successful model. It has continued to ensure the schools are maintained to a high standard.
In Indonesia education is compulsory at primary school between the ages of seven and twelve followed by three years at middle school. Having played a significant part in the establishment of provision for the compulsory schooling requirement in the area, Z.O.T has turned its attention to providing high school education for children between 15 and 18. Sofronie Foundation supports its goal to help those children who wish to take their education further by attending high school, where they can prepare for university or for work through vocational study.
Sofronie Foundation is contributing Euros 125,000 to the build of Maas High School in Idi Tunong in East Aceh which is due to open in March 2010. The Indonesian Government Department for Education is recruiting teachers and undertaking the running of the school.