Gervase Phinn Radio 4 Appeal

Gervase Phinn, for many years a school inspector and writer, presents the Radio 4 Appeal for African Revival.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b011297f/Radio_4_Appeal_African_Revival/

Education Week Launches at Cubu Primary!

This week sees the start of a new initiative between AR and Cubu Primary School.

Cubu Primary has achieved so much over the 3 years that African Revival has been supporting the school and its community. In 2007, the school had no water source, just a few textbooks to share between almost 1000 pupils and not one pupil had ever sat exams to continue on to Secondary School. Headteacher Daniel is so happy with the school’s development, “We now have a large fully stocked library, enough books and furniture for the whole school and a great sports and music equipment. Our parents, staff and management have really transformed since the training they have received from African Revival. We have infrastructure but our focus now is our performance.”

Education week is all about increasing motivation amongst pupils, teachers and parents so that pupil performance is enhanced. AR Programme Officer Ayella Richard has been working closely with staff and pupils at Cubu Primary in setting up the motivational activity, “It is going to be a termly event that sees parents coming into the school throughout the week to observe their children in class, talk with teachers and see how they can become more involved in their child’s education.”

Whilst Richard was travelling around UK Schools leading African Revival educational workshops he was particularly impressed by the various pupil merit schemes that schools had put into practice. He brought the idea to Cubu Primary and they were very keen to work on this as part of their performance enhancement projects. Richard is working with the school to launch the merit scheme as part of Education Week, “We had a meeting with teachers to decide on what criteria our children will be rewarded – from their behaviour, academic performance, and involvement in extra curricular activities, as well as those who show great improvement.” Each term, there will be a prize giving ceremony where pupils will receive prizes such as books and pens, as well as salt, sugar and soap to bring home to help their families.

Educational development is much more than building classrooms and supplying text books. In order to improve the quality of education in our schools we are working closely with pupils, teachers and parents to help change attitudes and enhance skills.

Zambia Bike Ride 2011 Hits Kalomo

Our Team of Amazing Cyclists Made It!

After months of preparation, hard training and serious fundraising, 30 intrepid British cyclists arrived in Kalomo on Wednesday night this week. This was the 4^th day of a 5-day challenge to cycle from Lusaka, Zambia’s capital, to Livingstone to raise money for African Revival’s projects.

Whilst in Kalomo, the team visited Lubombo and Kinnertone Community Schools, where they were able to walk around and see for themselves the work that African Revival is doing with the local schools and communities.

They also talked to pupils and teachers, and there was even an impromptu game of volleyball using new balls that were donated by the cyclists.

The cycle challenge takes place every year and the money raised goes directly to AR’s projects on the ground. If you fancy taking part in next year’s challenge, contact our UK office for more information.

Gervase Phinn presenting the African Revival Appeal

Renowned best selling children’s book author Gervase Phinn will be presenting the African Revival Appeal to the nation on BBC Radio 4, starting this weekend, asking for your kind support. A former school’s inspector, Gervase has spent most of his career working with children and teachers and understands all too well the power of education. His own humble background, and the difference education has made to him, has inspired him to present the appeal for African Revival.

Our UK fundraising team joined him in the studio recently and he explained why he has chosen to support us in the work that we do…

Your generous donation will be going to several projects set up in Zambia, Uganda and Sudan to give children access to education, opportunity and choice.

Make sure that you don’t miss the appeal! It will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 (online or LW and FM across the UK) at the following times: Sunday 15th May at 07.55 and 21:26 then again on Thursday 19th May at 15:27.

Last year, listeners raised over £1.5 million for BBC Radio 4 appeals. For more information about the appeal please visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qnc7

If you just can’t wait for the appeal, then you can donate now!

More Classrooms for Inkumbi!

Out in Zambia, we’re pleased to announce that work has begun on the latest project at Inkumbi Basic School – a new 1×3 classroom block! The building will have 3 classrooms, separated by 2 smaller rooms that may be used as staff offices or storerooms.

The block is being built on the site of an old double classroom building, which had become so dilapidated that it was becoming a danger to use. It was torn down by the local community a few weeks ago and four of AR’s expert builders are now preparing the foundations for the new classrooms.

[crowded classroom at Inkumbi]

The original bricks from the old building have been salvaged, as have some of the iron sheets from the roof and we’ll be able to use them again. This means that the overall cost of building the new block will not be as high as if we had had to buy all new materials.

Of course, whilst the block is being built, teachers at Inkumbi are having to find alternative spaces to teach their classes. Some are being held outside under the trees, whilst others are sometimes combined so that two grades use a classroom at the same time. This can mean things get quite crowded, but it is only temporary and we hope it will be worth it when the 3 brand new classrooms are ready later this year!

[site where the new classrooms will be constructed]

From Displacement to Development: Maro Awobi’s Story

Over 20 years of conflict in the Northern region of Uganda caused around 1.8 million people (80 % of the population) to flee their homes and move to Internally Displaced People’s (IDP) Camps. This displacement has had huge implications for schools and education in the northern region. Many schools were left deserted and pupils crammed into ‘safe schools’ that were located near to IDP camps whilst others received no education at all. Although the region has remained peaceful for over 5 years now, some schools have still not moved back to their original communities despite community members returning to their villages to rebuild their livelihoods.

Since 2006, African Revival has moved 5 primary and 2 secondary schools back to their original sites. This month saw the move of Maro Awobi Primary School from Pabo, an IDP camp with a population of over 70,000, back to the school’s original site in the village of Maro Awobi, 14km away.

Maro Awobi Primary School was founded by parents in 1998 and became a government school 4 years later. In 2003, rebel soldiers attacked Maro Awobi, torching homes, abducting children and killing many people. Community members got their families together and fled to Pabo IDP Camp.  After a short closure, the school was displaced in temporary classrooms at Agole P7 School and stayed there for 7 years.

In February 2010 African Revival travelled to Pabo and found teachers packing the last load of furniture and books into a large truck. As we travelled with the truck to the original site, excited community members lined the dirt road and many children chased the truck up a track to the school. Isaac, Chairman of the School Management Committee was also in this crowd, “We are so happy. Our children are back with us.” Primary schools in rural Uganda act as a hub for the community so Maro Awobi feels whole again. The head teacher also explained what impact the move will have on the pupils, “the pupils are now close to their homes. They can now eat at lunchtimes and have a short journey back to their parents in the evening. They are safe”. Many pupils were living far from their parents but now the school has moved back, families have been reunited and children are now living with their parents.

One year on and a lot has changed. Newly appointed headteacher David Komakech has been so impressed with the community’s cooperation with the school, “Since I arrived at Maro Awobi, parents have built housing for all of our 7 teachers, entirely at their own cost in addition to the 6 grass thatched classrooms that they constructed last year.” David explained that their hard work and enthusiasm comes as a result of the support of African Revival, “You know when a friend offers their hand to you, it really motivates you to work even harder than you normally would.”

When African Revival first reached the school’s site, it was just an overgrown field. The community transformed the site in just a few weeks by clearing the land and building 6 temporary classrooms. We noticed, however, that sanitation facilities were a major priority and built 8 latrines and drilled a borehole, as a clean safe water source. The school has received text books and office furniture and is shaping into what a good school should look like.

The school has made real use of their 70 acres of land; African Revival has constructed a sports pitch and, with the help of the community, is about to start working on demonstration gardens as part of our EU funded ‘Farmers of the Future’ Project.

Maro Awobi staff and pupils are extremely excited that our contractors are just one week away from finishing the construction of 3 classrooms, as well as an office and a large store room. Take a look at our photos of the builders putting the finishing touches to the well needed classrooms!

Northern Uganda: The Real Picture

If you Google ‘Northern Uganda’, what do you find? You will most likely stumble upon words such as conflict, abduction, brutality, violence and extreme poverty.

When I read an article from the BBC (Bitter legacy of Uganda’s civil war) towards the end of last year I was very disappointed – not because I felt sadness towards the ‘devastation’ that was described in the place that I call home – but because the article was another piece of negative coverage of the current situation here in Northern Uganda.

Western and even National media often portray the Acholi region and its people as helpless and pathetic, unable to cope with the devastating effects of war. This will explain the numbers of organisations and individuals from the West ‘coming to the rescue’!  An international journalist recently contacted me looking for a story on domestic violence in the North and asked me if I could connect her with people. After travelling around looking for a story she told me that her editor would not be happy as the stories ‘were just not disturbing enough’. It left me wondering when the conflict would cease being ‘sexy’ and if it would ever be possible to acknowledge people for their courage and strength.

As you can imagine, any conflict lasting over 20 years is going to have damaging effects on its people, particularly when it comes to education and livelihoods. And yes, from a fundraising perspective, devastation does sell but I am certain that instilling confidence in people makes projects actually work by empowering communities to take ownership of their own projects and futures. That’s what makes our work at African Revival so different. We don’t “rescue”, w work in genuine partnership with people who want to shape their own futures and the future of their children.

I have a lot of confidence in the people that I work with. It is exciting – YES you heard correctly – Gulu is an exciting place, and not just Gulu but rural villages and trading centres all around the 4 Districts that I have got to know over the two and a half years I have spent living here and working with African Revival. Many communities have moved back home to their villages which marks a new beginning for every generation.  Teaching resources are scarce and buildings aren’t even there in some cases. But the foundations are all there because people are determined to get their lives back for their children’s sake.

So what am I really trying to say? Simply that it is important, in the field of charity and development, not to underestimate people, especially people that we do not really know.  The amazing people that I work with would much rather receive our money out of confidence in their abilities to develop their own communities than out of pity for them as victims.

Visitors at Kinnertone Community School

DONORS VISIT KINNERTONE COMMUNITY SCHOOL

Earlier this month, the African Revival team in Zambia was proud to accompany two of our long-standing donors to visit Kinnertone Community School, where their money has been helping to transform life for the school’s 130 pupils.

We received a very warm welcome from the children and spent time talking to the teachers and parents about their hopes and aspirations for the future of Kinnertone school.

Before leaving, the children performed a number of poems and readings for us and were delighted when the visitors handed over a bag of assorted sports equipment to the head teacher, Patricia.

Kinnertone school consists of just 2 classrooms, which were constructed last year with assistance from African Revival. The pupils’ parents and local community struggles to support the school financially, but there is much commitment from them to the school’s development and they actively participate in any work that takes place there.