Context
Kapiri Mposhi is a small provincial town in Zambia, but a major transport junction. It is here that the main road from Tanzania meets the highway between the capital Lusaka and the Copper Belt towns. Similarly the railway from Dar es Salaam has its junction with the rail line from the Copper Belt to Lusaka and the rest of Southern Africa. Those transport connections have brought significant employment to the town, so Kapiri Mposhi is has a small population but it is growing rapidly. Within the town there are several primary and basic schools established to respond to the ever-growing demand for education. One of these is Matilyo School.
In 2007 the situation for Matilyo Community School was quite difficult. There were 1358 pupils in the school, but the facilities were extremely limited. Pupils studied sitting on the floor: only some classes had a simple desk for teachers. There was virtually no educational aids or textbooks used in classes: only the blackboard was available. For the first visit of Sustainable Global Gardens to Matilyo there was no water in the school. The desire for education was there but the facilities few.
October 2007 – a typical crowded classroom with limited facilities. Average class size at this time was more than 84 pupils.
Furthermore, Matilyo had a characteristic set of social problems which are typical of so many townships in Southern Africa. At the core of these difficulties is poverty associated with high rates of unemployment. Such problems are aggravated by high rates of HIV infection and a high proportion of orphans and/or vulnerable children (OVCs). Widespread excess alcohol consumption is a further hindrance to progress. Within this context there is a common desire to provide education for the youngsters of Matilyo, but there are very few resources to enable the establishment of good schooling there.
Matilyo Community School was started in 2001 by Sr Ernesta Paruch, a Holy Family sister from Nowy Sacz, with “lessons under the tree”. Afterwards the school grew rapidly, so that in 2007 it had 1358 pupils, but only six classrooms. In order to accommodate such demand for education the school organised ‘split sessions’ with pupils attending either morning or afternoon sessions. There was also an old lorry container in the yard which served as a spare ‘overflow’ classroom. With such measures it was possible to reduce class sizes to about 75 children per class. It was not a situation conducive to good education. Furthermore at the time of the SGG visit in 2007 to Matilyo, the school borehole pump was broken. This meant that there was no water on the compound, so most of the school’s flush toilets were out of action.
October 2007 - the shortage of facilities in this dry, dusty compound mean that sometimes this old lorry container is used as a makeshift classroom.
Matilyo Community School does have one advantage: it has space. The school has been allocated a large area of 300m by 270m, which includes a traditional house & plot as well as a football pitch. There is space for considerable tree-planting and gardening in what in October 2007 was a dry, dusty and largely treeless compound. It is SGG’s proposal to gradually increase the greenery within this compound over the next 5 years.
Aims
The initial aim of this project is to gradually establish tree cover over much of the school grounds, which in 2007 were largely waste space. One of the problems of Matilyo School is that many parents are unable to pay the small fee required by the school. Thus, a second intention is to encourage a group of women to cultivate a significant part of the compound in exchange for those school fees. SGG wishes to focus first on environmental & horticultural improvements within the school area, but we are also well aware of the broader needs of Matilyo, especially the water & sanitation facilities. Thus, a third intention is to search for possible sponsors with an interest in supporting educational development in Zambia.
The teacher of 4B Mrs Ngulube has a desk, but the 89 pupils must sit on the floor.
Progress
At the invitation of Sr Angelika Tabula and Sr Ernesta Paruch of Kalulu Holy Family Sisters, SGG visited Matilyo Community School between 31st October and 10th November 2007 with a view to establishing a tree-planting project. Discussions with the Head quickly established that this resource-poor school would welcome projects to improve almost all aspects of schooling there.
Matilyo School is, indeed, in need many new resources. In 2007 none of the classrooms were properly furnished nor even their construction complete. There is also a lack of school books, display materials, or most of the resources needed to enable a school to function. There is plenty of scope for donations for necessities more pressing than the school grounds. There is a small toilet block, but the school compound lacks water and so the toilet block is out of use. Water is vital for the continued growth & development of the school.
Crowded conditions & a blackboard the only educational aid.
During the November 2007 discussions between SGG, the Headteacher Mr Mawere and Sr Ernesta it was repeatedly made clear that SGG does not have immediate access to the large funds & resources needed to turn Matilyo Community School into a thriving learning environment. At that time two of the classrooms in use there were self-built and half completed. Even the completion of just one such classroom was beyond the scope of SGG. Nevertheless, it was understood that SGG could assist in turning the large open space around the school buildings from the dusty waste it was in late October 2007 into a more positive asset for the school.
After 3 visits to the school to discuss possibilities with the Head Mr Mawere, SGG proposed the following at a meeting on 7th November 2007:
- Mr Mawere should negotiate with Mr Ng’ona (a local teacher), Mr Mwape of the Agriculture Dept, or Mr Mpukaila (a local resident who has previously helped the school), or the Forestry Dept for the immediate purchase of approximately 100 trees. These should include 30 Cassia, 30 gum/eucalyptus (both at K 1,000 each), 30 fruit trees (e.g. mango, avocado, banana, guava, orange, lemon at K 1,500-2,000 each). The total cost should not exceed £30 or K 200,000.
- Mr Mawere & Mr Mpukaila should both start a tree nursery to provide trees for the school on the following basis – 100 gums at K 1,000, 100 cassia at K 1,000, 50 mango at K 1,000, 50 guava at K 1,500, 50 orange or lemon at K 2,000. These will be purchased next year by Sr Ernesta using SGG funds. SGG is also interested in buying bananas, but the price is not yet fixed. Some of the prices quoted here are a little below the asking price in Kapiri Mposhi in late 2007, but the lower price is offset by these being guaranteed sales.
- Sr Ernesta & Mr Mawere will reestablish the widows group, who will be asked to work on the school vegetable plot in exchange for payment of school fees. In previous years there has been such a group of 12 widows who planted beans & cassava in exchange for the school ‘fees’ of K 15,000 ($4) Any produce from this group will be purchased by Sr Ernesta at current market price & given to the school for distribution among needy pupils. Thus, this group of upto 15 women will have considerable incentive to grow profitable crops (e.g. onions, tomatoes, rape) on Matilyo School compound. In order to properly monitor the progress & output of these women, Sr Ernesta will visit the school plot once a week.
- Mr Mawere will select approximately 100 pupils, each of whom will be responsible for the growth & well-being of an individual tree. Those pupils who have properly cared for their tree will be rewarded by a payment of K 10,000 towards their school fees in November 2008.
- Mr Mawere will contact the Residential Development Committee as a matter of urgency in order to speed the already agreed relocation of the farmer still living on school land. If necessary, compensation will be properly paid for the farmer’s mango trees.
- Mr Mawere will organize the digging of a well within the school grounds, probably next to the large anthill. The well needs to be a good 15m deep at a cost of K 250,000. This is also a matter of urgency.
- SGG will provide information to all concerned about the best way of preparing compost for tree-planting.
- Mrs Nyendwa is responsible for helping Mr Mawere in any of the tasks listed above.
- Attention needs to be paid to repairing the borehole at the first opportunity.
- Sr Ernesta will keep a simple accounts book so that SGG supporters can know how any donations have been spent and produce a report of progress before May 2008. She will also hold the donation made by Sustainable Global Gardens. This donation to start the greening of Matilyo Community School compound was K 1,100,000 (approximately £140). Sr Ernesta will spend these funds as appropriate and inform SGG should there be a pressing need for further investment.
Mr Mpukailo did not attend this particular meeting, but later he agreed to produce young trees for the school in his own nursery. Also he agreed to give attention to the growing of a living hedge around the school compound. Moreover, it was agreed at a meeting on 10th November that Matilyo Community School is in urgent need of better toilet facilities. As the school was lacking water, most of the school ablution block remained closed. Mr Mawere has asked that SGG consider constructing a series of compost toilets at the school. SGG accepted that this would be a suitable project proposal for next year, but progress would depend on the securing of new funds.