Orphan Education Support - Zambian Villages

With several projects in outreach communities currently being developed I must again acknowledge our amazing team in Zambia for their continued dedication and commitment. All of them are volunteers, which has created sustainability for The Butterfly Tree. Community driven projects are the best solution to help overcome dependency, which is always a challenge when working with international aid.

Twelve years down the line and our projects expand from Mukuni to Sekute, Musokotwane, Nyawa and Moomba Chiefdoms in the Kazungula District, a vast area in the Southern Province with over 70,000 population. We are currently developing five schools and a health centre, located in remote areas, each can take several hours to reach. Since the introduction of mobile network we can now communicate with teachers and PTA members who can oversee some of our projects and report back to us.

Once we have completed a school project, it is handed over to the Ministry of Education and community. Trained teachers are funded by the government and the community forms a PTA committee to create sustainability. We still offer support in terms of HIV and malaria prevention, and donations of school materials and clothing for orphans, but it is vital that the local people run the facility. With our help thousands more children are receiving a sound education.

The same applies when we build a health centre, like the new one at Sikaunzwe, thanks to grant aid. Once the clinic, maternity ward, women’s shelter and latrines are completed then the facility will be run by skilled government medical staff and trained community workers. This way there is no ongoing cost to the charity and we can move on to new locations.

This month our young peer educators will help to build twelve community houses for widows and the elderly looking after orphans. For every house the company sells, they donate one to the charity. The youth group will shortly be on a break from college and will earn a small income to help support their upkeep.

Much of The Butterfly Tree’s success is because we use volunteers, which save us having to pay salaries. Our UK team all operate from their homes and rarely incur any expenses. I am delighted to say that during this past financial year only 1.86% was deducted for expenses!

Links:

• Houses donated to widows and elderly with orphans