A Chinese-Aided School: Forging a Thirteen-Year Bond Between Chinese and Guinean Engineers

Abdoulaye Diallo, a Guinean engineer working on the Simandou iron ore export terminal project, unexpectedly ran into an “old friend” near the project site in the small town of Senguelen. It was Chen Zhongquan, the laboratory director for China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC). Abdoulaye excitedly shook his hand and said, “Mr. Chen, do you remember me? In 2012, you and your colleagues built a school for us! Now, I’m an assistant geological engineer on the terminal project!”

This reunion, spanning thirteen years, was more than a personal coincidence—it brought Chen Zhongquan’s attention back to the school, which had since become the very heart of the Senguelen community.

Back in 2012, CHEC, one of the first Chinese engineering firms to establish operations in Guinea, was tasked with the preliminary survey and basic infrastructure construction for the Simandou port project. While conducting social impact assessments and community outreach, Chen witnessed a heartbreaking scene at the local school in Senguelen: a makeshift shelter supported by wooden posts, without walls or a paved floor. A discarded car wheel hub hanging from a tree acted as a makeshift school bell. During the rainy season, the tin roof clattered with noise as rainwater poured in, and the muddy ground became completely unusable.

The makeshift school from thirteen years ago

A detailed report and photos from the site prompted a swift and heartfelt response from the project team.

The very next day, technicians arrived at the school with measuring tapes and blueprints. Community elders and teachers were invited to the project’s meeting room, where they gathered around draft sketches, gesturing and discussing the plans. Designs were finalized overnight, and materials were quickly listed. At dawn the following morning, the roar of engines broke the town’s quiet as trucks loaded with red bricks, cement, and tools rolled into the muddy field that carried the hopes of local children.

CHEC rebuilt the schoolhouse from the ground up

CHEC technicians and local workers labored shoulder to shoulder—mixing cement, laying bricks, installing beams, and roofing. After three months of construction, a small yet fully functional elementary school stood proudly on the once-empty ground. It featured two bright and spacious classrooms, a modest office for teachers to prepare lessons and rest, and a small covered dry-toilet area. While modest by modern standards, the new school was a solid and reliable “castle of knowledge” for children who had once studied under a collapsing shelter.

Once the school was completed, desks and chairs donated by the project department were delivered. Locals—men and women, young and old—gathered spontaneously, lifting and carrying the furniture with their strong, weathered hands, eyes shining with anticipation and joy.

Time passed, and the legacy lives on. Thirteen years later, the school has become a proud landmark in Senguelen. The two original classrooms built by the Chinese company were like seeds, inspiring the community to value education more deeply.

Local children studying and playing in the schoolhouse

Today, the school boasts six standard classrooms and enrolls about 200 students. It continues to receive support from Chinese enterprises like CHEC, which have donated school supplies and sports equipment. In addition to Guinea’s national curriculum, the school also offers an introductory Chinese language course. Occasionally, the project department sends French-speaking staff or short-term volunteers to assist with teaching—offering local children a window into Chinese culture and making the school a small but vibrant hub for grassroots cultural exchange between China and Guinea.(Article/Photos by Wang Jun, Chen Zhongquan)