The new academic year 2024 to 2025 begins.

Daphney Phiri reports - ‘We are in the new school year that started on September 16th and ends on the 20th of December. September and October are always very busy and activities include purchasing and distributing resources, school and home visits, collection of progress reports, distribution of portable stoves and sanitary kits to name a few.

Distribution of resources

Learning materials like notebooks, pens, calculators and geometry sets are a foundation for academic success. It is for this same reason that at the start of each academic year, we equip our students with these materials. We are aware that our students come from disadvantaged backgrounds and equipping them with the necessary materials relieves them from the shame of not being able to afford to buy these materials and are equally able to participate in the classroom despite their socio-economic status. In September, I purchased notebooks and pens and distributed some to the students to promote academic success.

In trying to tackle the issue of girl’s underperformance, we also distributed sanitary packs to our girls. Period poverty is common in most of underprivileged females. Most female students stay away from school during menstruation because of a lack of proper materials to use as a result their academic performance is affected. We provide reusable pads each year to help the girl child stay in school.

School visits

I visited our partner schools in Zomba and Blantyre to assess student behaviours, attendance and performance. These visits also strengthen the relationships and trust between Mbedza and the schools. Usually, teachers share any emerging issue concerning our students which I find fundamental for the success of the daily operations of the program.

One of the purposes of the school visits is to collect academic reports. Access to the reports provides a clear picture of how the students are progressing. Through them, I am also able to identify other causes of poor performance that might help with ideas of how to improve student success.

Home visits

I visited some homes as part of our monitoring process. I visited the homes to create safe environments for the students. They need to feel supported from both the school and the home and know that there is collaboration amongst both parties. This creates a sense of belonging as well as empowers the student to work even harder. Part of the home visit provided an opportunity to distribute Gamba Tinsmith stoves and solar lights.

The portable stoves are more fuel efficient than traditional cooking on open fires reducing cooking times as well as reducing the need for firewood. This saves time in collecting firewood and or purchasing firewood.

In 2024 we have faced huge cost increases in school fees, uniforms, shoes, school bags and many other budget lines:

In the last academic year, we parted ways with 28 form four students. They had reached their final year of secondary school. In this new academic year, the gap left by these 28 students needed to be refilled but unfortunately due to high inflation we have had to reduce student numbers by 12 places. In 2024 to 2025 we will therefore support 88 students compared to 100 in 2023 to 2024.

We are really grateful for the 47 UK sponsors who sponsor this programme enabling our 88 students this year to receive a Secondary School education. Education in Malawi is a national challenge with only 15% of young people completing Secondary Education.’