Seibo Activity Report- June 2019
In June 2019 we continued to honor our commitments to our donors & the children of Malawi. Delivering food is always a privilege & a joy and the highlight of the month. Team Seibo also visited Mzimba as well as allocated more free nursery places to children who would otherwise not have the chance. All this made possible by your ongoing support for Seibo. Zikomo Kwambiri.
June 2019 Activities
-12,655 school children received a daily school meal at primary schools in Mzimba.
-1,062 nursery school children received a daily school meal at Chilomoni nurseries.
-There are now 73 children on nursery school scholarships (Seibo Kids)
Nursery School Overview: June 2019
– Registered numbers of nursery kids in June: 1,323
– Food Requirement: 2,460 kgs of Phala (Opening Bal: 1,365 kgs)
– Food Order: 2,100 kgs of which 1,000 kgs for storage
There are more kids who need your help!
Just as important as the work of feeding is knowing if other
children are not being fed- just because they don’t attend nursery.
On the 4th of June the allocations committee met to review 13 applications
for school aid. Of those applications 6 were deemed to be eligible for Seibo
sponsorship. 3 of the applicants have already been given a nursery place at
St. Theresa’s, Abundant Life & All Saints respectively. We wait on a further
update from Malawi as to the allocation of a nursery space for the other 3 x kids.
Our partners in the Outreach Team (part of MTCC) continue to conduct house visits and with the help of our donors we resolve to continue to provide educational opportunities for the poorest of the poor.
Meet the New Seibo Kids!
Precious:
Born: 5th July 2015. Precious began his education on the 27th June 2019.
For recording purposes our team in Malawi measured his weight (13.4kg) &
height (99.1cm). I am sure I speak for all of us when I wish him all the best
on his school adventure!
Christian:
Born: 20th September 2016. Christian’s education began last month on the 27th of June. Raised by a single mom our champ weighed in at 13.3kg and was 91.5 cm when he began the journey to a bright future.
Joseph:
Born: 26th January 2016. Joseph took his first steps to a bright future on the 27th of June when he started nursery (with a little help from you!). Upon starting school Joseph is 13.5 kgs & 93cms in height.
Meet The Kids Parents!
On the 7th June Team Seibo in Malawi (in partnership with MTCC) held a parental forum. The meeting attended by 45 nursery school parents covered:
– introduce good parenting practices
– understand good/bad behaviour management
– understand personality & spiritual pillars in relation to behaviour
..and it looks like they had fun too!
New Nursery Schools- More Intros!
When Seibo began we fed 40 x nursery schools in Southern Malawi. Over time 6 x partner nurseries have closed down. We’ve spent the last months identifying new partners. Last month we introduced Fatihu Deen & Little Bee nurseries. Here are the other candidates!
Grema Nursery:
This nursery is actually a tent located in Chilomoni Hema run by Jeshurun Ministries. Its a relatively new nursery having begun in January 2019. In June the nursery had 20 children attended by 2 x teachers- of which 1 holds an ECD certificate. Learners pay 2,500 kwacha for baby care or 1,500 kwacha for nursery care.
Tivwirane Nursery
Located on the site of St. James Catholic church. In June the school had 18 registered students ranging from 5 months to 5 years. There are 2 x teachers of which one has an ECD certificate. Toilets & water are available on site.
Tinashe Nursery
Located in Nthukwa in a Love of Jesus Church building. The school has 22 kids (13 boys and 9 girls), aged between 1- 6 years.There are 2 teachers at the school of which 1 has an ECD certificate. A toilet is available and water is fetched from a nearby tap.
Samirah Nursery
Located in Chilomoni Hema in a Champions church. The schools has 25 kids (15 boys and 10 girls) and fees are K5000 per month. There are 2 teachers at the school of which 1 has an ECD certificate. Currently there is no toilet at the school, they had one but it fell during the rains early this year and there are plan to rebuild it during the school break in August.
MZIMBA PRIMARY SCHOOLS- JUNE REPORT
– In June we provided a meal for 13,518 (6,587 boys & 6,931 girls) in primary schools
– 19,400 kgs of food was ordered & distributed in the schools
– Team Seibo visited Mzimba from 10th to 14th of June for assessment
Team Seibo in Mzimba
Team Seibo traveled north to monitor & assess our feeding activities in Northern Malawi.Meetings were held with all school committee members and representatives of community stakeholders (PTA, Chiefs, Mothers Group, etc). The discussion topics included:
Ongoing issue of inactive School Feeding Committees.
Some schools are not turning up for their duties. Mr. Zimba- head teacher at Kazomba primary stated that feeding volunteers start well but opt out due to the lack of incentives. Currently at Kazomba only 4 of the 10 members of the committee are deemed active.
– Poor Roads
The access roads to Chabere & Kanyerere have always been an issue but continue to get worse. Despite discussing this issue with local chiefs the promise of ongoing maintenance has not been kept. This makes both food delivery & programme monitoring difficult. Currently the food stuffs (phala) is stored at Kazomba or St. Paul’s for either committee members or students to collect later.
– Lack of Commitment from Chiefs
Some chiefs (ex. Kazomba & Matewu) barely participate in feeding related activities/discussions. This in turn discourages villagers. However it cannot go unsaid that we at Seibo are extremely grateful to the committed few who work hand in hand with head teachers & the Seibo Schools Meal Officer in Mzimba.
– Lack of Proper Storage Space
While some schools have tried to build stand-alone storage space the majority of Seibo’s partner schools still store food in sub-standard temporary buildings
While disheartening to read of the issues facing us in Malawi it must be understood against the background of meals being served every day to thousands of children. Our issues are not perfect and may never be but Seibo are committed to ensuring a hot meal for children who come to school. And that’s where our focus must remain.
School, Health & Nutrition Meeting- 14th June
After visiting each school our team in Malawi then meet with all SHN (School, Health & Nutrition) Teachers from 12 schools to share experiences and discuss progress. On this visit we held the meeting at 2 x different venues on June 14th.
Meeting A: Kaphuta TDC
Attended by 19 people representing 8 x schools (Kaphuta, Kazengo, Mzimba LEA, St. Paul, Davy, Kanyerere, Kazomba & Chabere)
Meeting B: Kabuku Primary
Attended by 7 people from 4 x schools (Kabuku, Matewu, Chamngulube & Macherecheta)
A meeting was held to encourage school feeding committees to continue to carry out their agreed responsibilities.To start the meeting each school shared their experiences and understanding of how the feeding committee works at their school. The lack of volunteers was again cited as an issue.
From Seibo’s perspective schools were once again urged to take the issue of safety & hygiene very seriously. We asked if a committee member could be made available each day to both supervise cooking & ensure the storage room is kept clean. Proper recording of food deliveries was also encouraged and overall the impression given was that while slow progress is being made.
The Future- Meet Annie
Meet Annie Chakwira-mother to 4-year-old Martha. Her child is not yet in school but she finds it important to come and cook for other children at Chamngulube primary school. In her experience too many children go to school without breakfast. Parents fail to provide because of poverty. Feeding in schools has helped a lot and she knows that once her child is enrolled in school she will need the services of other people. “It’s very rare to see families giving breakfast to their kids these days. The phala is helping a lot so I love to see the kids’ smiling after getting phala”.
Annie is a volunteer in Malawi.
Seibo- 15 yen appeal
For 15 yen Seibo can provide a hot school meal in Malawi for one child. If you are able to support please do so here.