Helping Fountain Gate Academy to improve private education in Tanzania
Founded in 2007, Fountain Gate Academy started its activities with a nursery and primary school in Dar-es-Salam. As the founder, Japhet Makao saw an opportunity he introduced a day-care service as well.
GroFin’s intervention helped the school to improve its finance department by implementing appropriate accounting software and assisted in hiring qualified staff for the department. The management information system (MIS) for the school has improved in terms of pupil academic data including results, progress, and financial reporting. MIS for the academic records is now available on a centralised school database using the reliable school software package.
Since several parents had moved to Dodoma, Japhet seized the opportunity to start a new branch there. GroFin helped the entrepreneur to formalise the land ownership of the Dodoma campus. The school also managed to get the Certificate of Right of Occupancy at the Dodoma Campus in the name of Fountain Gate Academy. As part of GroFin’s business support, we helped the school improve its architectural dining drawing to be ready for the construction of a high-quality dining hall. GroFin also recommended putting up an ICT laboratory so that students can learn ICT at a young age.
Since COVID-19 struck, all schools had to close their doors, leaving Fountain Gate without revenues from March 2020 to July 2020. Japhet explains that most parents are still in arrears on the payments for the period though they are trying to ensure payment for the new terms is paid. Fountain Gate continued salary payments to the staff during the school closure which had a significant impact on its operating cash flow. With guidance from GroFin, Fountain Gate managed to reduce unnecessary operating expenses, freeze salary staff increment, establish all health recommended infrastructure for COVID-19 precaution before reopening of schools.
“My dream for the future is to establish a special talent school and expand Fountain Gate footprint to other regions of Morogoro and Arusha,” – Japhet Makao, Founder of Fountain Gate Academy
