Deana gives new boost to education in Zambia
CHILDREN living in Zambia are being offered a way out of poverty thanks to the work of a retired Bridgend health visitor and a businessman.
Deana Owen has already overseen the building of one school in the southern African country after being struck by the plight of hundreds of orphans who walked miles to a rundown school.
Now, together with the charity the Friends of Monze and the backing of retired businessman Paul Green, work has begun on a second school, which will enable hundreds of children to get an education.
“There are certainly very many vulnerable and needy children not currently in education who will be queuing up to enrol knowing that education is the way out of poverty and brings independence,” said a spokeswoman for the Friends of Monze.
“For girls, education means they will not marry early, they will have healthier children, more of whom survive beyond five years old.”
Deana first visited Monze in Zambia, a town the size of Bridgend, after retiring in 2012 and was struck by the plight of the hundreds of children orphaned due to Aids, who walked miles to a rundown building which served as their school.
When local people asked for her help she set about enlisting the help of fellow Quakers to set up a charity called Friends of Monze.
A bore hole was sunk and money raised to build a school with three classrooms, which is attended by 880 children who have to learn in shifts.
The spokeswoman said the Zambian Department of Education was so grateful that they provided six qualified teachers.
When Paul read of how much the Friends of Monze had accomplished he asked to come on board by offering to become a trustee of the charity.
Then he heard of the village of Kampunu, some miles from Monze, where the local villagers had begged Deana to enable them to build a school – promising to make the bricks and to do all the heavy labouring themselves.
Paul, a former builder, offered to help fund this project and when Deana arrived in Kampunu in June there were 6,000 handmade bricks waiting to be used, and another 9,000 still hot in the handmade kiln.
There were heaps of sand collected in oxcarts, and piles of stones, hand crushed ready for the foundations.
The spokeswoman said progress is being made on the school and they hope it will be open by the end of the year.