Sun, 04 Dec 2016 10:47:51 +0000
By Richard Luo in Sinda
THE promotion of education among children in rural areas by Rural Children Hope has cheered Chieftainess Nyanje of the Nsenga speaking people of Eastern Province.
Chieftainess Nyanje said the coming on board of Rural Children Hope (RCH) had come at the right time as government schools alone could not absorb all school going children.
In interview at her palace at the weekend, Chieftainess Nyanje said her chiefdom appreciated the work of RCH in building schools in the remotest area at Mpeni village called Cokato RCH primary school and Mwasiti RCH at Nyanje headquarters.
She said RCH aimed at reducing illiteracy and ignorance among communities by educating children who happened to be future leaders.
“This organisation has removed shame from me because it has promoted literacy in my area such that my community is so impressed with it and we can only wish God to bless it,” she said.
“Previously my area had a challenge because there are few government schools resulting in many school going children herding cattle in their villages.”
The chief said most children failed to secure places in those government schools and ended up herding cattle or became victims of child labour especially young girls who were taken to towns to work as baby sitters.
“But with the coming of RCH, the organisation has already built two primary schools that has continued promoting education system. My subjects were truly behind in terms of education such that ignorance could be smelt in the area,” she said
The traditional leader explained that without RCH helping government agenda, her area would have been behind in terms of education.
She recalled that the same organisation had also helped the communities in reducing poverty levels by distributing school materials like books, uniforms, clothes and shoes.
On Wednesday RCH founder chairperson, Dr Dhally Menda, paid a courtesy call during which Chieftainess Nyanje urged the doctor to continue with the good works RCH was doing in her chiefdom.
“The community is very happy with what you are doing no wonder I take you as my own children and there is no community that doesn’t know your helping attitude. I am also impressed with the programme of building houses for the aged as some of these people do not no relatives to take care of them,” she said
Dr Menda expressed happiness that RCH was producing good fruits and thanked the traditional leader for her kind words.
“Thanks mum for your words we shall try to do what we can do to our communities as long God gives us resources” he said
RCH chairperson and programme manager, Nyankonzi Zulu, visited a house built for an old aged woman under a program called children caring team which is aimed at sharpening the young ones to be responsible citizen through the skills they acquired at a younger age.
RCH has also drilled boreholes in various communities as a way of promoting safe and clean drinking water.
Rural Children Hope is also one of the organisations that has embraced government’s re-entry policy as it has taken a lot of teenage mothers back to school via RCH sponsorships.
