Sawa: From makeshift camp to semi-urban center

Sawa as a military, vocational and academic training center has embraced twenty fife rounds of members of national service and high school students. When Sawa was first established in 1994 and accept the first round national service participants it was only a make shift camp. Eighteen years on Sawa has been transformed into a semi-urban center accommodating thousands of grade 12 students from all over the country and many more vocational students.

Today Sawa has become a beautiful place to live with its modern residential and school buildings as well as other buildings for administrative purposes and facilities including a hospital. Sawa, as vast as it is, is linked with roads. Electricity and potable water supply are twenty-four hours, hence, students have ample opportunity to use their time studying, reading or for extra-curricular purposes and keep themselves fresh and clean.

Sawa which has been known for training of members of the national service is today education and vocational training center. It is hub of education of the country producing disciplined, dedicated and youths which are the future of the country and important actors on the ongoing nation building endeavors.

Sawa for it embraces students from every corner of the country is not only a center of training but also instills discipline and sense of unity in the students while providing the opportunity for sharing experiences and maintaining national values. All nine ethnic groups are represented in Sawa and each one has the opportunity to learn the culture and tradition of the others and share its culture and tradition to the others. It is give and take situation. With this kind of transaction the youths have the opportunity to enrich their state of mind and thereby strengthen their unity and nationalism. Students learning in Sawa do not need to travel to know the traditions, customs and cultures of the other ethnic groups. All are there available in the dormitories and in class rooms for every body to learn. Hence, knowing each others tradition and culture will persuade the youth to respect each other’s tradition and culture there by developing tolerance and strengthen unity and enjoy the diversity.

Nation building is a process that takes time and asks a substantial energy and resources. And to move on in the right track of development the participation of citizens and in particular of the youth is imperative. To realize the full participation of citizens there needs conscious, skilled and above all responsible citizens with a vision. And that is exactly what is being conducted in Sawa. Students are provided with academic and political education as well as participate in the agro-industry activities in their spare time so that they become physically and mentally fit for their future career as citizens.

Sawa, hence, is not only a center of academic education center but also a center in which citizens have the opportunity of getting all rounded knowledge and experience. Upon their completion of training from Sawa the youth are expected to fully engage themselves in the development endeavors to build prosperous and developed Eritrea in which its people live a cozy life and with peace and harmony. A nation that puts credit on its citizens will in the final analysis grow steadily on its own without expecting handouts from outside forces. A country with increased percentage of skilled human resources has the potential of becoming self sufficient in terms of food security and development.

Sawa which commenced its activities as a make shift camp is now a semi-urban multifaceted training center. With the transformation and pace it witnessed in the course of the 18 years, Sawa definitely will become one of the beautiful cities in the country where citizens will be eager to visit and enjoy its clean air and warm climate.