Students, Teachers and Trees: Project One Update

I stepped off of the bus in Taveta and was immediately blindfolded.  Slightly dazed after the six hour journey from Mombasa I had no clue what was going on.  Once I regained my senses, I spun around discovered Sammy one of my friends from Taveta standing there laughing hysterically.  At in that moment I knew I was home. 

It’s been four months since we left the school in Mtakuja completed and in the hands of the community there.  Handing the school over to the community members in Mtakuja was an important step in enabling the growth of a sustainable project this community.  The ultimate proof of the success of this project would be in the community’s response to the project with the absence of staff from 4frica.  And their response has been incredible.

I revisited the Makutano Nursery School last week and was thrilled to be greeted by just under twenty students learning in the classroom there.  Since we left the community of Mtakuja have sourced a teacher for the school, cleaned the compound, set up an interim committee to manage the school and enrolled seventeen students for the remainder of the 2012 school year.  The enrollment for 2013 is expected to double to around thirty-five students.

The teacher at the school, Madam Dorcus, is also starting a tree planting program where each student will bring one tree seedling and plant it.  Each student will then be responsible for watering and caring for their tree.  I was very impressed by this initiative and the repercussions it has for the environment around the school.

Madam Dorcus Delivering Tuesday's Lesson

Congratulations to everyone how has been involved in this project.  This first pilot project fills me with such great hopes for the future of 4frica and the communities in the Taveta District.  Plans for Project Two are well on their way.  We are currently working on budgets for the project/s and meetings with the community and government stakeholders were held last week.  The project will be announced before the end of the year.

Students Learning At Makutano Nursery School

Return to Tsavo

It’s been six months since I’ve set foot in Taveta.  Six months too long.  However, in life sometimes practicalities must been seen to.  And for that reason, I’ve spent the past six months back in Australia earning some much needed money to fund my return trip to Kenya.

But here I am.  Right back where it all started.  Not much has changed in Taveta - some new government offices, a new sign claiming credit for road repairs (the road is in worse condition than when I left) and a few other things which were functioning and now ‘aren’t working’.  That’s about it.  I didn’t expect anything different.  In fact, on a selfish level, it’s comforting that nothing has changed.  Because it feels as though I never really left.

Walking back to the Nursery School in Mtakuja

So why am I back? First and foremost to put some much needed finishing touches on the school we built in Mtakuja at the end of 2011.  Secondly, because it’s my home away from home and it feels incredibly wrong that it’s been nearly six months since I’ve walked to through the villages around here, waved to the children, greeted the elders and shared a joke with the young guys who always make me smile.

All that I really need to say in this post is that I am back.  For those of you reading this who know me, you know what it means to me to be back in Taveta.  For those of you who don’t know me, it means the world.  After re-visiting Mtakuja today and bumping into countless familiar faces, I am confident that Taveta will continue to be a part of my life for many years to come.  And for the next week, my focus will be on getting everything totally finished in the Nursery School in Mtakuja so the children can begin reaping the full benefits of attending a quality school to kick off their education.

Tsavo Sunset

Project One: Mtakuja Nursery School

So it’s been a while since I’ve posted, but I certainly hope that wait was worth it because the children of Mtakuja now have a Nursery School! Amazing support was shown for the project and donations totaling $3500 rolled in just weeks after I announced the first project. In Decemeber (2011), I spent three weeks out in the village of Mtakuja – mixing cement, liaising with the village elders, mixing cement, purchasing materials, mixing cement, hammering, mixing cement, arranging transport and you guessed it, mixing more cement!

Mixing Cement

During those three weeks, over 100 members of the community of Mtakuja volunteered their time to come and help with the construction of the Nursery School in the village. Intense rains throughout the first 10 days of the construction slowed things down and flooded the foundations for the school a number of times. But with the unwavering support of some very dedicated members of the community, we managed to build the children of Mtakuja a school in just three weeks!

One of the Dedicated Volunteers from Mtakuja

Now, I’m back in Australia working on the administration side the charity I’m trying to start up, catching up with friends and family, and, working to get enough money to go back to Kenya in late March. Project Number Two isn’t far away and I’ll be releasing details of that in the coming months. In the meantime, I hope you like the images and footage of Project One! I know that the people of Mtakuja are thrilled with the result, and, so am I. I will also be revisiting Mtakuja later this year to put some finishing touches on the school, check in with the children and teacher, and, to make sure that everything is progressing well in the village. Watch this space for updates from Mtakuja and for the progress of my (still unnamed) NGO..

The Final Stages of the School Construction

High Fives All Round

Project One. Mtakuja Nursery School. from 4Africa on Vimeo.

Mtakuja Nursery School Construction