December 2022 Newsletter

Chimwemwe Home

2022 has been a significant year in terms of national exams. At the end of this year seven of the

Chimwemwe children sat national exams – 4 doing grade 7, 3 doing grade 9 and 1 doing grade 12

(equivalent of GCSEs/school leaving certificate). Now it is school Christmas holidays for about a month,

so everyone is taking a well-deserved break from studying.

A donation from a supporter in the UK enabled the children to be taken on an ‘end of term’ outing to a local camping ground with a swimming pool. The rainy season has started in Zambia, but the rain is a bit ‘on and off’ at the moment, and fortunately the outing day was hot and sunny. This meant the children were able to spend as much time as they wanted in the pool (photo of Rachel left), which they thoroughly enjoyed! They also were able to see a few animals (eg zebra, impala, giraffe) and have a lunch of Hungarians (sausages) and chips – an opportunity to eat something different to their normal fare of nshima and relish. Nshima is the local staple (a thick ‘porridge’ made from mealie meal). Relish is the name for what accompanies the nshima, typically dark leafy vegetables (now often home-grown) plus meat/fish/soya pieces, cooked with tomatoes and onions.

Gideon, pictured above, has become quite proficient in drumming and now regularly plays on a Sunday morning at the church meeting he attends.

When Sonia has the time and materials, she still does occasional craft sessions with the children. Usually this is just with the younger children, but the session making bead bracelets involved everyone.

Computer School

It was mentioned in the last newsletter that Mike, the computer school trainer, had taken up a teaching position in a government school. It had been hoped that Michael, who had been doing an internship as a trainer under Mike, would take on the full-time position. In practice this did not happen (in fact, Michael also got a government teaching job). So instead, George has been employed into the position. George, in the black T-shirt on the right, is a young single guy who, like all previous trainers, is an ex-student of Enterprise College. Prior to doing his computer skills training he had been a music teacher in a primary school. Subsequent to his training he ran his own small business for a while before his current role with AETZ.

Memory (above), from the Chimwemwe Home, who has just completed her grade 12 studies, will commence the computer courses in January. The computer school still attracts students, such as Memory, who have finished their schooling and require computer skills to assist with future studying and/or potential work; students, such as Pauline, who is currently working as a waitress in a local restaurant, but who will have the opportunity to get different, better paid work with such skills; and others who are enabled to get a promotion within their existing workplace.

All at AET wish you a Happy Christmas and Prosperous New Year!