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Microfinance
Child Profiles
Melody, Ethel and Prisca
Child Profiles
Emmanuel is the first born of 6
children. He lives with his
mother and two young brothers Extra and Excetra. Also staying with them is a cousin
of his named Sadness. His two
other brothers Active and Atlanta live in the village, but came to visit
with their father in September.
They live together in an unfinished house near Kabanana compound. They squat there without paying rent as the owner uses them for security. However, this means that as soon as the owner of the house wants to finish the house and move in himself, this family will have to find somewhere else to live. In September they were told that in a month they will have to relocate as he is coming back from Malawi.
Emmanuel enjoys playing with his brothers and
has made a banjo out of wood to keep them entertained. He has a close friend and
neighbour called Steven who he likes to pray with.
Emmanuel has been out of school for three years. Their mother works at a local school in the mornings as a maid but the wage she makes is not nearly enough to support her family. The children have nearly nothing and even their blankets have large holes in them and have worn much too thin. Before Primach bought a school uniform for Emmanuel in September 2009, he only had two t-shirts and one pair of trousers.
Emmanuel is now in Grade 5 at Airport School in Choma. This means he will need sponsorship for two more years of primary education at £5 per month and 5 years of secondary eduacation at £20 per month.
Felistus, born in 1994 is
currently in Grade 7. She likes science and wants to be a
teacher. She also enjoys playing netball and
reading.
An extension was being built on the Siamazomba house to accommidate the large family. Unfortunately, the builder quarrelled with the father, who was being unhelpful and has started to drink again, and left the building unroofed. For now, the father has found someone to put a grass roof on the house. To put an iron roof on it, 15 iron sheets and 6 planks are needed.
The mother is HIV positive and has joined the Mwapona support
group.
She has also started making scones and sells them at the market for
500K each. This business was
started with a microfinance loan of 150,000K which she has successfully
paid back.
Felistus is moving to Grade 8 next year when she will need
sponsorship for 5 years of secondary education at £20 per
month.
Ethel
Siamazomba
Ethel was born in 2001 and is currently Grade 1. She is a shy sweet girl. She is helpful at home and hardworking and polite in school. She lives with her parents, 3 brothers and 3 sisters. There are 7 children in total.
An extension was being built on the Siamazomba house to accommodate the large family. Unfortunately, the builder quarrelled with the father, who was being unhelpful and has started to drink again, and left the building unroofed. For now, the father found someone to put a grass roof on the house. To put an iron roof on it, 15 iron sheets and 6 planks are needed.
The mother is HIV positive and has joined the Mwapona support group.
She has also started making scones and sells them at the market for 500K each. This business was started with a microfinance loan of 150,000K, which she has successfully paid back.
Ethel really enjoys playing ball games with her friends. She sometimes comes to church with someone from her family.
Thank you for making it possible for Ethel to go to school
Patrick
Mudenda
He was born in 1992 and has never been to school, but he says he would love to be a teacher. He loves playing football with his friends. His parents are separated, and he mostly lives with his mother. Here he stays with his sister and 2 brothers. At home he helps with housework. His father is mentally disturbed and he sometimes stays with him to take care of him. His mother will tell him that she can't keep him and he will have to leave. His grandmother gets fed up of him. Perhaps it's because he stammers badly, they have no patience for him. He is very dependant and might appear useless to the family. "I don't understand," says Mrs Mfula . "It's like they're turning him in circles." He is a believer, and sometimes goes to church with his friends.
Even with the money the dream of going to school seems impossible to achieve. As well as the disturbed home life, other kids laugh at him. After some classes and assessments run by Primach, we found that he is at Grade 4 level. Primach supports him by buying him clothes when he needs them, but she would love to do more. This case is a good example of a where a drop in centre would do a lot of good. Patrick would know that there is a place he can always stay, and he could have a chance to learn family life. But we would love to do more.
Ancient
Chiko
Ancient was born on the 15th December 1989. He lives with his brother and three sisters. Both his parents have died.
When he's not at school Ancient is busy studying. He loves playing football, and is really good at it too. His favourite subjects in school are English and Civics (General Studies). He dreams of becoming a doctor.
Ancient is a believer, and goes to church every Saturday with his sisters.
He began school in 1997, and is now in Grade 10. His school is called Nahumba, and is 5km from his home. He walks this distance and back every day. He has 3 more years of secondary education to do until he completes in Grade 12. This means he needs 2 years of sponsorship, at £20 per month.
Prisca
Nalungwe
Prisca was born in 2000. She lives with her mother and sisters. She is currently in Grade 2 at Mochipapa Community School where she is working hard and doing well.
She is one of 5 girls and has a new baby brother whose name is Gift. Her mother is humble and good natured. She is joyful even though she has problems.
When Prisca is not in school she likes to read and make friends. She also spends time helping around the house. At school she enjoys English very much. She is a very intelligent child and always scores well in class.
She attends church sometimes, with her mother.
Prisca is now being sponsored by a donor in the UK.
Thank you for making it possible for Prisca to go to school.
Brian
Mweene
He was born on the 6th of November 1990.
He is in
Grade 8 at St Patrick's
He used to live in a small house beside the house of his father and step-mother as he didn't get on with the step-mother. His younger brother and his mother have died.
Since the very recent death of his father (mid August 09), Brian has been living alone. His step-mother returned to her family.
He struggles with living alone as he feels lonely. When we met with his teacher she told us that she had noticed he now looks sad and lonely. He is pictured above outside his home.
He now has to really on himself and no one else; what little money he earns from piece-work goes on charcoal for cooking and relish to go with nshima. These things he buys once a day, which is less economical than buying one big bag of charcoal, but he has been forced to live hand to mouth in this way. Piece-work could be sweeping someone's yard or helping someone with building. It is a very uncertain way of living. Primach has bought him a large bag of charcoal which should last him for many months.
He plans to sublet the small (unfinished) buildings on the land that his father left him but he needs to repair them. He will use the metal sheets on the house he used to live in to finish the roof of the house he now lives in. Then he will roof the small house with grass.
Brian enjoys school very much now (he is pictured above outside his school with his friend). He leaves home at 5.30am for the start of school at 7. School finishes at 12.45. He used to be playful and not serious, always failing with grades under 40%. He is now doing much better, always above 40%, even 96%. He also volunteers as a 'peer educator', going into schools to teach about HIV/AIDS, how to live and be a good citizen. In school he is known as 'the pastor' because he likes preaching to his friends. He really loves drama and performs with his school in competitions with other schools.
School started on September 7th and before Brian went to school Primach bought him some new school shoes. As well as giving him books and pens for school, he was also given a story book of Robin Hood to help him to practice.
Thank you for making it possible for Brian to go to school
Kuka
Siamazomba
Kuka was born in 1993, and is unsure of what day exactly. He lives with his mother and father, 2 brothers and 4 sisters.
He loves playing football and his favourite subject is maths and he says that he would love to become a medical doctor. To help in the house, he does piece works to help buy food. He is a Christian, and comes to church sometimes with a member of his family.
He began school at Grade One in 2005. He is now in Grade 5. This means he will need sponsorship for 5 years of primary education (including this year) at £5 per month. After that he will need to do 5 years of secondary education, at £20 per month.
Steven
Sililo
Steven was born on the 24th April 1990. He is now in Grade 9.
He loves school very much and last term he came
number 1 in class. He studies
from
When Steven is not busy studying he works to
make a little money to help his family. It is almost impossible to find
work where he lives; in fact around 95% of the church congregation are
unemployed. Steven has shown
great initiative in borrowing money to buy a camera. He goes to the various compounds
in Choma taking photos of people, which he then takes to be developed and
sells back to them.
He sells each photo at K3, 000 (K1, 500 deposit and then the rest when the photo is delivered). The cost of developing 37 photos is K30, 000. This means he makes a profit of 111,000 if all goes well. This is about£15. He explained that he chose to buy the camera rather than a phone, like his friends had told him to, saying that "a phone will take money from me but a camera can give me money."
On top of this he digs stones from the ground and cracks them to sell to those who use them for building projects. One wheelbarrow is sold for K5, 000. This is back breaking work, but his family is large and the poor income of his mother is far less than sufficient to provide for them.
He also takes time to teach his
younger brother and sister, who are both in primary school. He also enjoys going to church and
fasting and praying with his friend and neighbour,
Emmanuel.
Melody
Siamazomba
Melody was born in 1999 and is currently in Grade
2. She lives with her parents, 3 brothers and 3
sisters. She is helpful at
home with washing dishes and caring for the baby - a nephew of the
family. She continues to work
very hard in school.
An extension was being built on the Siamazomba
house to accommodate the large family. Unfortunately, the builder
quarrelled with the father, who was being unhelpful and has started to
drink again, and left the building unroofed. For now, the father found someone
to put a grass roof on the house.
To put an iron roof on it, 15 iron sheets and 6 planks are
needed.
The mother is HIV positive and has joined the
Mwapona support group.
She has also started making scones and sells
them at the market for 500K each.
This business was started with a microfinance loan of 150,000K
which she has successfully paid back.
Melody loves maths in school, and playing netball and skipping. She is confident and very bright.
She comes to church sometimes, with her family.
The Siamazomba family have no means of providing for their needs. Both the parents are unemployed and there are 7 children all together. Melody is now being sponsored by a donor in the UK.
Thank you for making it possible for Melody to go to school
Purity
Nalungwe
Purity was born in January 1996.
She is another daughter of the Nalungwe family, the elder sister to Prisca.
She is the one in the house who cooks porridge for the family, among other chores. She enjoys playing netball and her favourite subject at school is science. She says she wants to be a teacher when she completes.
She began school in Grade One and is currently in Grade 5. This means that she will need 7 years of sponsorship; 2 in primary school at £5 per month, and 5 in secondary school at £20 per month.
Winter
Siamazomba
Winter was born on the 24th of February 1991 and is currently in Grade 7 at Mwapona Community School. He is hard working and enjoys school. He lives with his parents and his 2 brothers and 4 sisters. He spends his time helping at home and reading. He loves playing football with his friends and he really enjoys acting and drama at school.
An extension was being built on the Siamazomba
house to accommodate the large family. Unfortunately, the builder
quarrelled with the father, who was being unhelpful and has started to
drink again, and left the building unroofed. For now, the father found someone
to put a grass roof on the house.
To put an iron roof on it, 15 iron sheets and 6 planks are
needed.
The mother is HIV positive and has joined the
Mwapona support group.
She has also started making scones and sells
them at the market for 500K each.
This business was started with a microfinance loan of 150,000K
which she has successfully paid back.
Thank you for making it possible for Winter to go to school
Agent
Simunene
Agent was born on the 5th of July in 1991. He is in Grade 10 in Mamba High School Boarding School. He lives with his mother and young nephew, his father died. They have had to rebuild their house since last year, as their home was burnt down in May when his mother was escorting Agent to the bus for school.
His mother is quiet and shy; she sells vegetables at the Mwapona market which she buys from the town market and nearby villages.
Agent is smart, focused and determined, when he is not at school or helping his mother he likes to study and also play football. He wants to become a doctor, or failing that, an accountant. His average test marks are "distinction". Boarding provides room, mattress, breakfast, lunch and supper.
School started on September 7th and thanks to the aid of a sponsor he was able to go with his school fees, books and pencil.
Michael James Simande
My father and mother died
when I was still very young, then I went to leave with my grandfather and
mother in Mwapona village. My grandparents could not afford to take me to
school despite having qualified to do my 8th grade. To make matters worse, my
grandparents also passed away after a few years and I went to leave with
my Aunt. Life has been really tough for me but I know that if I can get an
education things will be different for me. I am asking if there's anyone
who can sponsor me into school.
Michael is 15, and should
be in Grade 8. This means he
needs 4 years of secondary school sponsorship at £20 per
month.
Brandina Mungo
She is 17 years old, and was born on the 4th October 1991.
She lives with her mother and father. After school in the mornings she comes home to study and help in the house by washing plates among other chores.
She loves playing netball and athletics. Her favourite subject at school is English. She works very hard, especially in school, and she dreams of one day becoming a teacher.
Brandina is a Christian, and attends church every month with her parents and her friends.
She was placed on this programme because she couldn't afford school fees but wanted so badly to go to school. It is important to Primach to see girls educated.
Brandina has now completed school, thanks to Primach.
If you would like more information about the Child Sponsorship Project, please contact Primach at the following address or by e-mail:
If you would like to send a donation, please make your cheque payable to 'Primach' and send to the following address. If you want your donation to go to a specific project, please mark the back of your cheque accordingly. If you want to GiftAid your donation, please tell us, including your address and postcode. Thank you.
Primach
Rose
Bewick,
Tan y
Bryn,
Glanwern,
Borth,
Ceredigion, SY24
5LT
Primach UK is a charity for tax purposes. HMRC reference number XT23597
Primach Zambia registered charity number: 01711
