Two years on...

Nyanza Primary School

Unbelievably, it’s two and a half years since we were in Tanzania so this blog post is a long overdue update on what’s been happening at Nyanza Primary School. We only get occasional information and often just an assurance that all is going well so we were delighted to recently receive a very encouraging update about what has been happening from Canon Arthur Mauya who is the education link officer for the diocese. (See previous blog for more details about him.)

Firstly, however, can we say a huge thankyou to all those of you who have faithfully contributed to The Porridge Project, often without any feedback. We have greatly appreciated your prayers, financial support and interest, and hope that the following news will inspire you as much as it has us and will enable you to see what has been achieved over the past two and a half years.



The Porridge Project kitchen built by the local community

Arthur writes,

“The school and the community of Nyanza village would like to extend their heartfelt gratitude to you all for your wonderful generosity. Since this project was introduced in 2016 it has made a big difference to the school, and frankly speaking, the impact it has made is immeasurable! May God our Almighty richly bless you for what you are doing in this poor community. The children, the staff members, the village government and most of all the community are very happy with this project. They strongly support it and kindly ask you to continue supporting it in the coming years.”

The table below lists the number of pupils registered for the incoming school year. Every child will benefit from The Porridge Project. There are 7 members of staff, (4 male and 3 female) and 7 classrooms for 640 children!

CLASS	GIRLS	BOYS	TOTAL
Nursery	31	33	64
Class 1	43	45	88
Class 2	61	58	119
Class 3	52	56	108
Class 4	44	62	106
Class 5	19	39	58
Class 6	34	15	49
Class 7	28	20	48
	312	328	640

Queuing for porridge

Arthur states that the benefits from the Porridge Project for the children are as follows:

· Children’s health has improved
· Many more children are coming to school on a regular basis

· In 2016, 74 children in Classes 3 and 4 were deemed as being unable to read, write and count but in 2018 there were just 12
· Last year’s final exam pass mark was 60% while this year it has risen to 82%
· This year 47 pupils out of 58 in Class 5 passed their national exams with grades B-D
· The children look happy and eager to learn

  

It would appear from the statistics that the number of children attending school after Class 4 drops significantly, most likely because the children are needed to work at home or to earn money. Education is not a priority for those whose main aim in life is to survive. 

Arthur also writes that the role of parents has massively increased:

· After the Porridge Project was set up the parents and wider community were united together in constructing a proper kitchen and a room where food is stored securely. Your financial support has  helped to put a roof on it to protect it during the rainy season

· The parents, along with the school staff, have planted a school shamba - a plot where they grow maize for lunch so that children may have a longer day at school
· The parents are motivated and want to continue to pay for the school’s cook and guard
· Parents now come to school to hear about their children’s progress at school which is a new initiative
· Parents are purchasing cups to cope with the increasing number of children and also to replace the broken ones



Maize being grown  for school lunches

Arthur notes that the school and the wider community greatly appreciate the project. They have seen the benefits from it and have decided that they want to work very hard by taking part in it but also to supplement the maize production so that each child has lunch at school twice a week. From now on each parent will contribute 2.64 kg of maize to the school for this purpose. There are also challenges ahead in that the kitchen needs finishing and also needs a proper floor. The doors and windows also need to be fixed and the walls need plastered as they will inevitably be washed away by the rains. It is also difficult to cope with the ever-increasing number of children joining the school. When we were working at Nyanza there were 450 children at the school - now there are 640 children but still only 7 classrooms and 7 teachers. Arthur asks that we continue to support the local community of Nyanza Primary School both financially and in prayer. Next year the school will be connected to the main electricity supply and he would love the school to have at least one computer to be able to communicate by email and a photocopier... "so that they can do more exams to improve their academic performance!"

We are excited and enthused by this news and want to continue to support the school, especially because the community has grasped the vision and are prepared to be involved. We are very aware that the project could easily have disintegrated if the community had not taken ownership of it and we are extremely grateful to God for the progress that has taken place over the last two and a half years. 

If you would like to continue to support The Porridge Project that would be wonderful but we do not assume this - please let us know if you want to terminate your giving. Thank-you once again for standing with us in supporting these folks who may seem a very long way away but who desperately need our help. Your support is clearly making a difference in the lives of not only the children but of the whole community. 

With many thanks,

The Campbell and McFerran Families

For support information email: teamtanzania2016@gmail.com