In Kimbanseke, one of the poorer areas of Kinshasa, the capital of the DRC, the committed teaching staff and motivated pupils have just returned to BIYELA I primary school at the start of a new school year. This is despite a dilemma for the staff caught between a nation-wide strike by teachers standing firmly alongside their union and demanding their right to adequate wages, and awareness that the strike unfortunately adds itself to an already weakened service to communities around the country. One of the teachers I meet in BIYELA I primary school is Cecile Mwanga, the 6th year teacher. She manages a class of 55 pupils aged between 11 and 13 years.

When I talk to her during the short time she's allowed to spare, she tells me, "When there were no benches, the percentage [of attendance] was 55% - 70%. Attendance has risen. Even when it rains, children still come because they know the room is safe."

One of the pupils I met in Cecile's class is a young girl called Mayele. Mayele describes to me what the learning conditions were like and how she now feels. "We used to sit on the ground to work. Now we're happy and can write easily. I can sit up."

After Mayele's speech, a group of pupils speaking all at the same time can't help but express their emotion as each one tries to tell me about how whenever it rained, they couldn't see the blackboard because the room became dark, and that, if it was a morning rain, by the afternoon, it was difficult to study. The air got stuffy.

As I leave BIYELA I, I turn around for a moment to look at the school building today. It's difficult to imagine exactly what it was like trying to receive an education in such an environment. The school building is plush by local standards and learning conditions have clearly improved. In the short time Oxfam has supported BIYELA I primary school through the Parent Teacher Association much has changed.