Mtandika News
Mtandika News 2017 Update – Michael Agius reports
The Trade School at Mtandika is going from strength to strength and Sister Barberina has applied for formal Government registration, through the Government’s VETA [Vocational Education and Training Authority]. However, this meant that:
• the school needed certain standards of equipment for courses e.g. electrical sewing machines, as well as the treadle machines already in situ and more computers.
• Sister had to start courses for boys as well as girls, so had instigated an electrical engineering course. This necessitated the building of a boy’s dormitory, as well as buying equipment and materials for the boy’s courses.
During the year the boys’ dormitory has been constructed and the required equipment and technical books were purchased.
In addition, the works that VETA had requested prior to formal registration were carried out i.e. enlarging the classroom for the electrical course, building an electrical store, converting the main hall to provide a classroom for the construction course, redecorating the main hall, building a canteen for day students, constructing shelves for the new library building, building a workshop store, making tables and desks for the electrical and construction courses, repairing the girls dormitories, redecorating classrooms and providing a new tailoring workshop.
The Trade School continues to be fairly self-sufficient in terms of food, with the students helping to grow their own maize, vegetables and fruit. Sister also keeps pigs and rabbits to provide meat for the students. In addition a few cash crops are grown to provide a small income for the school. The solar pump continues to provide invaluable water for irrigation purposes.
The maize mill that we purchased a couple of years ago continues to be put to good use. As well as being able to grind maize for the Trade School, the mill is used by the villagers and provides Sister with a small income.
The Trade School continues to give some 30 girls a three year broad based education, which as well as teaching them Tailoring skills, now includes English, Maths and Computer Studies. They also still have to help cultivating the shambas [allotments] growing the food that form their basic diet, as well as helping prepare and cook meals. Some 10 of the 30 Trade School girls who are orphans or from very poor families, are sponsored through the generous, regular donations from our long term sponsors.
Besides the older Trade School girls, Sister looks after ten orphans from about 13 years old down to 5 years, who all attend the village Primary School. The eldest of whom, Almininata, completed her Primary School education this year.
The Trade School continues to be a very happy environment for the girls and now boys to grow up in and obtain a practical and all round education that will serve them throughout their lives.
As well as the activities at the Trade School, some 30 students, who are either orphans or from very poor families, continue to be educated at Primary, Secondary and University/Technical College level through the generous, regular donations from our long term sponsors. With increasing costs over the years and the depreciation in the value of the Pound of over 20% in mid 2016, we need an increased amount of money to cover the overall educational costs. Fundraising is therefore extremely important and two such functions were the annual Mtandika Quiz in November, attended by nearly 120 sponsors and a garden party (organised by my wife Mary) held in July at our home, enjoyed by nearly 80 sponsors. Both events raised about £2000.
In early September 2013 Michael Agius wrote :
The daughter of a friend of ours and one of her friends has just been out to stay at Mtandika for two weeks to teach English. Each morning they taught at the Primary School, with classes of over 100 on occasions, before going back to the Trade School for one to one tutorials with some of the nuns in the early afternoon and then classes with the Trade School girls in the late afternoon and evening. Quite a schedule!!
But they enjoyed their time there so much they created a choir before they left - follow this link
They said that the condition of the classrooms was generally good but that there is still a bit of work to do with the rehabilitation.
Teaching Students English
As well as that they helped in the shambas!!
Working the Shambas
Library
Following our visit last year, one of the things Mary and I particularly wanted the teachers to do was to organise the school library. The library was virtually permanently locked and there were books on shelves in the middle of the library, which probably hadn't been opened since Mary gave them to the school in 1999.
We arranged for one of the teachers to go up to a school in the Southern Highlands which friends of ours had renovated and extended and which has an excellent functioning library. She got a lot of good ideas from her month there and in the last year has re-organised the shelving, placed all the books in orderly sections and generally got the library functioning. However it is still too small to seat large classes and the two girls came back with the proposal that the library should be knocked through into an adjoining, unused classroom. This seems an eminently good idea to us. They would also need additional tables and chairs.
Library
Borehole & Solar Pump
Earlier this year a borehole was drilled on the flood plain just above the Lukosi River at Mtandika. The close proximity to the river and the high water table at this location will enable water to be pumped throughout the year without damage to the pump from the fast flowing river when it is flooded, as has happened in the past.This will not only ensure adequate supplies for use by the staff and students at the Trade School but plenty of water for irrigating the shambas, which provide vegetables and fruit for the students, as well as allowing cash crops to be grown.
First flow from the borehole
In a recent email Sister Barberina said, "Thank you very much. We now have enough water and have planted our maize. This year we didn’t get any maize"
Working the Shamba
Fundraising for Mtandika – African Inspired Music
An exhilarating EP of African inspired music has just been released and composed amongst others by Harry Agius, aka DJ Midland, and youngest son of one of our Trustees, Michael Agius, who leads our efforts to support the communities in Mtandika. All profits from the sale of vinyl discs or digital downloads will go to Mtandika.
You can access Harry Agius' fan page on
http://www.facebook.com/midlanduk
The project, the second in the series started by "JD Twitch" of Glaswegian DJ Duo "Optimo" aims to raise money for African charities and strive to an "Autonomous Africa, free of western interference. The original vinyl pressing has sold out but a re-press is in hand. Vinyl copies will be in stock again in these shops:
Through the link below you can access the website which tells you more about this radically new fundraising venture.
https://soundcloud.com/twitch/autonomous-africa-2-ep
Links are given below to the following which give an idea of how the Trade School at Mtandika has developed over the years:
Christmas newsletters to sponsors, summarising the years activities
Mtandika Letter to Sponsors November 2016 (MS Word file, 1.2Mb)
A powerpoint presentation showing aspects of life at Mtandika and giving details of sponsorship costs for student education
Mtandika Presentation (PDF file, 2.1Mb)
Education-Update
Education is essential if Tanzania is to fully develop its full potential and anything is possible given the opportunity. As well as supporting Sister Barberina in her capital expenditure, some 10 of the children at the Trade School and 30 at local Secondary Schools who cannot afford the fees, for whatever reason, are being sponsored in amounts varying from £120 to £250 / year respectively.
Just one of many success stories is the case of Flaviana Charles, an orphan brought up at Mtandika by Sister Barberina.
Flaviana
Flaviana went on to get a Degree in Law from Dar es Salaaam University in 2002 and in 2010 received a Masters in International Law and Human Rights at Coventry University. She has now returned to Tanzania and is working for the Legal and Human Rights Centre. She has co- authored many of their publications and has a weekly television slot, giving people legal advice.
2012 Graduation
The Trade School is going from strength to strength. Two years ago there were three graduates, last year five and this year eight. The third, 2012, graduation was held during Mary and Michael's visit in September.
The standard of the students portfolios was very impressive. These two photos show the graduates preparing their portfolios for the final exams.
Graduates Preparing portfolios 1
Graduates Preparing Portfolios2
The graduation involved a lot of dancing, much singing and many speeches.
Graduates_Dancing
The graduates, wearing garlands, were all presented with certificates by the guest of honour, Fr Louis.The graduates are wearing suits that they have made as part of their final portfolio.
Garlanded Graduates
Presentation of Certificates
Besides their lessons the students still have a full day helping in the shambas [allotments], cooking and general running of the school. As Sister Barberina said, "we teach the girls how to live". When the graduates leave they are all given a sewing machine, so that they can set up their own businesses.
The group photo shows Sisters Barberina and Domenica together with some of their helpers and the Trade School girls.
Sister Barberina Helpers with Trade School Girls.
Funding
The cost of sponsoring a child's education is :-
Trade School girls £180/year or £15/month
Local Secondary School [Form 1 to Form 4] £180/year or £15/month
Boarding at Secondary Schools [Forms 5&6] £300/year or £25/month
University students, say TSh 1,500,000/year £720/year or £60/month depending on the Government loans obtained as a result of Form 6 results and chosen University course.
A video of a visit to Matandika in 2008