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Communities Without Borders is working with the Chipego Women of Hope in the Linda community, situated on the outskirts of Lusaka. Linda is a home to more than 20,000 people. Currently, Chipego is supporting approximately 60 children in Linda with plans to expand this to 300 in 2006. They are the only NGO supporting children in a government school located in the community. Chipego has an orchard at the school and they are intending to go into fish farming in future in order to help sustain food, shelter, and health for the children. There have also been discussions with CWB to construct a health center for the community.
The Linda community's matching donor community is First Parish Church of Lexington, Massachusetts, and the principal Coordinator for the Chipego Women of Hope is Ms. Christine Mabuluki. Christine has worked tirelessly with Chipego, the children, the "mothers" of the children, and school officials.
Filed by Communities Without Borders' Envoy to Zambia, Jane Ndulo (April, 2005)
The Chipego Women of Hope's main goal is to provide sustainable support to the orphans and the vulnerable children in Linda community. They hope to achieve this by raising some money through various fund raising activities they are undertaking such as peanut butter making, tie and dye, knitting, sewing, chrocheting, baking scones and cakes etc. .
On the March 30, 2005, I met with Christine and one of the executive members, the Deputy Headmaster of a Primary School. I had a briefing on the project. On April 8, I was introduced to the women in the project and the executive members. I was fortunate in that on this very day they were also having a general meeting chaired by Mr. Kanene the Advisor. It was interesting to listen to the women's deliberations during the meeting. The women participated actively in the meeting. They appear to be a very ambitious group. After the meeting I was shown some exhibits of their products such as table cloths, tie and dye materials, knitted woolen chair backs and peanut butter. These were beautiful and of good quality.
The women were concerned that it has been difficult to find a reliable market for their products. As a result, they have not been able to meet all of the needs of the orphans. They also stated that they needed some assistance to source funds to strengthen the activities they are currently undertaking and plan to undertake. Fortunately the Headmaster of the school has given the women a piece of land within the school premises on which they have planted some fruit trees and these are doing well.
On the same day I met the 60 orphans been supported by Communities Without Borders. Only two were dressed in school uniforms. Christine informed me that the uniforms they distributed to the children do not last long since for most of the children it's either their only decent clothing or it's the only clothing they have and they have to wear it every day even when they are not attending school. Christine will distribute the new uniforms to the children when the next term begins on the 9th of May.
The Headmaster is still compiling the pupils’school progress reports for last term, and these will be mailed to Communities Without Borders as soon as they become available. Overall, the performance of the children in school requires improvement, and we are looking into ways in which we can make a positive difference in the coming term. Photographs of all the children supported by Communities Without Borders are being taken and the Headmaster is pasting the photos in two albums/books with some basic summary information on each child. One of these will be for your office and will be given to the Communities Without Borders members who will be visiting us.