20 April 2009

Cedric’s School

What a pleasure it has been this month to see the children of Cedric School once again and to meet with their headmaster Mr Mwanza, a dedicated man who understands the numerous needs of his students and staff. The Foundation will have to address these needs one at a time — running water, better toilets, more books, more classrooms and the installation of electricity, to name the most urgent. Mr Mwanza could enrol at least 100 more children if he had enough classrooms and teachers, and this is true of many schools all around Zambia.

The Rotary Club of Kitwe

We have received a very warm welcome from this club, and their interest in the Cedric Project has been most encouraging. With the help of other international partner clubs they are willing to apply for funding from The Rotary Foundation by way of a matching grant for a water project and new toilet blocks for Cedric’s School. Such assistance will greatly improve the standards of hygiene in the school — a need that we feel is urgent. The club have also suggested that we install a second water tank at the same time to make water available to the wider community.

Establishing Limapela in Zambia

We have now signed a formal agreement with the owners to purchase Cedric’s School and the 11 hectare block on which is is built. As soon as the legal requirements have been met, which is expected to take another 30 days, the transaction will take place and the school will be signed over to Limapela Enterprises Ltd, the private company that the Foundation has now set up as its legal entity in Zambia.

Buying farmland from Cedric Whittemore is not legally possible at the moment. But we have had an unexpected offer of 50 hectare subdivision of Rivendell Farm near Luanshya. John and Kendra Enright, who are close friends and keen supporters of the Foundation, are the owners of this farm. They are offering the land, on very attractive terms, to provide a base for Limapela Enterprises as well as a production unit to support our endeavours. While considering this option, our attention has been drawn to the needs of the huge impoverished Baluba community next to the farm. There is one community school in this community, and one government primary school. The government school has a roll of 1,200 children, but only six classrooms. Another school sits unfinished and unused in the middle of the community because the NGO responsible for building it ran out of funds ten years ago, and so far no organisation has been willing to complete it. Representatives from the community and the Luanshya City Council met with us last week to discuss our possible involvement. At this stage we can only register our interest, but it certainly would be a worthy challenge.

Plans have now been finalised for two small houses to be built for the Raymonds and the Websters to live in, and we are awaiting quotations from a building company in South Africa.