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Mzuzu, North Malawi

Joy and frustration

There would be a lot of work to do at the Habitat school in Mzuzu. But before expensive sub-projects can be started, IPA decided to test a new partner organisation.

Mzuzu is the centre of the north, with its 220,000 inhabitants it is the third largest town in the country. It boasts nice lodges, many petrol stations and even a supermarket which could be found anywhere in England. What a contrast to all the schools in town! One example is Habitat: More than 1,300 pupils are packed into wooden shacks which, that is the impression you get, can not have been built for human beings. The children have to sit on the natural soil, there are not enough toilets and the blackboards can hardly be used. Where to start? A new building would only solve the most urgent problems for three classes, but there are many more. And it would cost a lot. Investing such a big amount of money is risky, and moreover it was the first time IPA worked together with this NGO. The most pragmatic solution is the purchase of coursebooks and teaching materials – they are urgently needed in most schools. The venture does not get out of control and the risk stays manageable. And you help all the schoolchildren – now and in future.

Desired side effects

"We are looking forward to what you can do for us", the school director said to the visitors from Switzerland at the beginning and at the end of the evaluation meeting. And she made no secret of her hope that an immediate follow-up project would be announced. She did not know that the project for coursebooks and teaching materials was a test for the local NGO. The previous year IPA had seen and located the problems of the school but had also pointed out several internal drawbacks. A staffroom is certainly not the place for a chicken, and the office in the administration building was in a precious mess. IPA had made it clear that a second project would only be started under the condition that the management of the school would be improved. This time, a year later, everything was tidy and clean. Statistics of the development of the school were hanging on the wall. The headship had obviously learnt their lesson. In a big effort the teachers and the children had jacketed all the 1,900 coursebooks with scraps of plastic given to them by the parents. The office of the deputy headmistress had been cleared and changed into a library for the new books and teaching materials. They had all done their best, had improvised and found good solutions. The overall performance of the upper classes is clearly and steadily improving. The school has made its contribution, but IPA still could not promise to start phase 2 of the venture. First of all it must be decided if the cooperation with the new partner organisation can go on. The joy over the first project phase is toned down by the frustration that a seamless continuation is not possible yet. But this is the only way in which a carefully organised cooperation with a new partner can be successful.

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