Enrolment at Help to Self Help

We face a hectic week as we approach the end of our time here.

Our first job is to try to enrol 2 boys from TEKUA onto the electricians training at the vocational centre, Help to Self Help. Zakayo and Said have been chosen by the staff and students at TEKUA for this opportunity, but have to pass an interview assessment. They wait nervously for the one & half hour test. We are hopeful they will succeed and we are delighted when Mrs Makunde confirms they have passed. They start the 2 year course today and are thrilled at the opportunity your donations have given them.

 

New "Billy" For The Walipo Group

We move onto Wamata next to see how the Walipo group (25 HIV positive widows/widowers) have managed since we left them last year with 7 new goats to help each family become sustainable.

It is time to pass on a goat and Liston is proud to show us the 6 month old goat he is passing on to Juliana. This means that 13 members of the group now have a goat with 3 female kids still to be passed on shortly and 5 more pregnant. They now need another "billy", and we agree to buy this with your donations. It will not be long before all the members of the group have a goat.

We all agree this has been a successful project. Thank you.

 

We Meet Rogathe

We are then introduced to Rogathe who has already started a community group for disadvantaged teenage girls whose families cannot afford secondary education.

 

She is an experienced tailor and has rented a building and equipped it with 8 sewing machines. There are so many girls wanting to join that she has to use strict criteria to choose those most willing and coming from the most disadvantaged families.

We are very impressed at another example of someone local already helping in the community. We decide to make a donation for materials to help her and the girls continue their training.

 

Some New Arrivals At Living Water

 

The following day we visit Living Water to meet the 8 new children who have arrived recently.

All of them have sad stories not least the youngest, Zawadi, just 18 months old. She was born to a young mentally retarded girl who was incapable of looking after her. The baby was found by local officials, unfed, unloved and neglected.

With no extended family coming forward, Dora and Anza agreed to give Zawadi a home.

 

Vocational Training Possibilities for TEKUA

 

We then continue to investigate other possibilities for vocational training and visit a college which offers training for nursery teachers and hotel operations.

We give Chris and Ally at TEKUA the details for them to consider their choices.

We make a donation to TEKUA for the first 6 months of 2009 that will pay for some of the finishes touches to the new building, arts & crafts materials and a teaching fee. In addition there is an allocation for some further vocational training this year. As we leave, the art students are busy painting in their new workshop, what a difference it has made, thanks to your donations.

 

Nkwawangya Community Group

We’ve been asked to give our views on the newly established Nkwawangya Community Group being supported by a UK volunteer.

 

The village is in the shadows of Kilimanjaro, a rural community 10 miles from the main tarmac road. We spend an afternoon with the project leader, Edgar, who briefs us on progress to date and Garrie shows him how to prepare year end accounts.

The following day we visit the local primary school and are impressed with the new kindergarten class, the carpentry workshop and the women’s workshop (as yet to be equipped). We can certainly see some opportunities for income generating activities.

As in most small communities, the headmistress, Madame Urassa, tells us of the plight of some 30 or so orphans who cannot afford uniforms, lunch money and books for primary school.

 

We are then taken to the new dispensary which has recently opened, attended by Dr Shoo 7 days a week. It is becoming increasingly used by the people in Nkwawangya and 2 neighbouring villages as an alternative to the long distances they previously travelled for health care facilities.

 

Dr Shoo informs us the main illnesses are flu, malaria, tape worm, diarrhoea and a host of water born diseases due to the fact that children use a nearby untreated stream rather than a longer trek to a fresh water stream. Clearly the main priority is for a school water tank to be connected to a new main water supply installed very recently in the area.

 

Ndoombo Aims High

Back in Arusha, we pay our final visit to Ndoombo to talk to the headmaster, Piter about his plans for the coming year, and to meet the new English teacher, Dinno.

They both have plans to move Ndoombo into the top 20 secondary schools in Arusha. To help them achieve this, we confirm our donation for solar panels, teacher’s salaries and further text books.

 

"Helping 100 Grandparents" Project

Finally, in this busy week we agree the start of our “Helping 100 Grandparents” project.

The outreach workers, Grace and Juliana at Wamata have identified 6 grandparents who meet the criteria, 3 of whom we visited last year. We visit the other 3 and it reminds us yet again of what a hard life they have struggling for day to day existence.

 

Here is Eliekunda, over 80 years old, who lost her husband in a 1980’s cholera outbreak. She subsequently lost 4 children and a granddaughter, leaving her with 1 grandchild and 2 great grandchildren to care for. She still looks on the bright side of life and shares a joke with us.

A pregnant goat will provide much needed nutritious milk plus the opportunity for making a small income. For just £100 we can provide a goat and all the initial support needed by the grandparent.

Your donations have helped us to help these poor families and we confirm the start of our project with funds for 10 grandparents.

 

Fun and Games With Wamata Kids Club

Saturday morning we spend time with the Wamata Kids Club.

These are all children affected by HIV/Aids. We play games, sing songs and have piggy back races; great fun was had by all!