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EDUCATION
FOR ALL |
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| The Concept | |||
"Education" feeds the mind and helps it to grow, just as protein does for the body. Education means that Swazis can learn new skills and so improve their lot, both in the immediate and longer-term. "For All" means that all children AND carers are involved and implicated. Programmes are constructed to ensure that, in a given catchment area, all children can benefit, with none excluded on grounds of poverty or pressure from their families. By supporting their teachers and their heads of family,as well as the children themselves, we seek to create a climate that will allow every child to grow in ways that we, in the 'developed' world, often take for granted.
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| The Focus | |||
The EFA project is basically divided into 3 focal points. Top-ups School Capacity Building School Infrastructures
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| The Starting Point | |||
In 2001, our local Indvuna (headman) and his committee requested that we open a pre school for OVCs (orphan and vulnerable children), as there was a growing need within the community for this facility. Our pre schoolers once graduated could not access education, as the government sponsorship programme only started in 2004. We found private sponsorship for them and so a growing need of destitute children became apparent, to whom we responded with an appeal for funding.
We also made an appeal for assistance to Neighbourhood Care Points, where a bridging programme had started for children out of school.
David Bliss, our EFA donor came forward in 2004 to enquire how he could assist with educating Swazi children. We sought advice from UNICEF, as the amount of money he had remitted was substantial.
Our UNICEF representative, Dr Brody advised us to utilize this funding over two years in order to make a major impact. We formed a professional team consisting of the education officer from UNICEF, two representatives from the Regional Education Office, Manzini, the Ministry of Education and ourselves. We decided to enrol the OVCs in the government bursary programme for orphans. We arranged for their uniforms to be made & assure that thier stationery needs are supplied . We established a library so that we could assist our sponsored students with their homework and reading skills after school. We are currently trying to maintain a feeding programme for these children in the afternoons. The kindness of private donors has made this project possible. |
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A
word from our sponsor |
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From my visits to the Kingdom I know and understand completely how critical education is, to give pride and purpose to the young people who are the future of Swaziland and to help to overcome the many social and custom-based practices which place such heavy burdens and stress on them. The EFA Team has not so much a challenge but an obstacle course to tackle. Their greatest ally in this work is however the nature of the young Swazis themselves. One would really struggle to find people elsewhere with so little materially but with such an appetite for life and learning. |
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The EFA Team can tap into this energy force and it does so with brilliant success. EFA Team members cannot however limit their efforts to the process of education per se: they are forced by the situations they confront to deal with matters that would be seen as peripheral or even unimaginable in Western Europe, from where I write. How to
educate kids that have no access whatsoever to water and how to motivate the teachers
who by the same token have no toilet or washing facilities? I personally don't know the answers to these questions but the EFA Team clearly does because it is achieving these seemingly impossible objectives. I am committed to supporting EFA financially. I hope sincerely that the reading of this website will persuade you to do the same. |
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