Mary Immaculate International School inaugurated in Dhaka
by Sumon Corraya

Sponsored by PIME Sisters, the facility teaches in English, based on a programme increasingly sought after by middle class families in the capital. The facility will also financially support five other schools in remote villages offering free education to the poor.


Dhaka (AsiaNews) – The Mary Immaculate International School, a new educational facility set up by the Missionaries of the Immaculate Conception (PIME Sisters), opened its doors on Monday in Dhaka.

Located in Monipuripara, in the capital’s Tejagon area, the English-language primary school will follow the Cambridge curriculum, a programme increasingly sought after by Dhaka families.

When the first 10 pupils arrived, they were met by teachers and the Sisters waiting for them in a welcoming environment.

“Our charism is evangelisation,” said principal Sr Emanuela D’Costa, speaking to AsiaNews. However, the school will also offer “academic lessons” as well as “moral education to the students so that they can grow as individuals and citizens.”

The Missionaries of the Immaculate Conception already run five schools in some of Bangladesh’s remotest villages, providing free education to the poor.

The Mary Immaculate International School in Dhaka requires a tuition fee, but the money will also serve to support the society’s work across the country.

The “new school’s tuition fee is very reasonable,” explained Sr Emanuela. “Mid-income families can afford to pay for our school.”

Archbishop Bejoy N. D'Cruze of Dhaka, who also heads the Bangladesh Catholic Education Board, blessed the facility on 20 December.

The school can accommodate up to 40 students. New students will be able to enrol starting this this month.

“We are very happy for such a quality school. It is a neat and clean campus; the environment is very good. Children can play here,” said one parent.

“I feel safe and worry free to keep my son in this school,” he explained. Both he and his wife attended a missionary-run school and want the same for their children.

The Missionaries of the Immaculate Conception have 12 convents in Bangladesh and 71 local nuns, 15 of whom carry out their ministry as missionaries in other countries. Another 15 Sisters come from abroad and are currently living their vocation in Bangladesh.