Nyumba ya Masambiro's Mission Statement

The Background

In 2009 Phunzira started raising funds to construct a centre in the north of Malawi called NYUMBA YA MASAMBIRO (literally, House of Learning) that could act as a healthy learning environment for students from nearby schools and members of the local community to access free-of-charge. The primary construction phase of the centre was from July 2010 until January 2011, with volunteer accommodation due to be built in early 2012. Every facet of the centre has been constructed by training unskilled, local people to use rammed earth building techniques - compared to bricks this has proven to be extremely energy-efficient and affordable.

The centre aims to offer free academic tutorials in Maths, English and Science as well as life skills sessions on fishing, farming and HIV/AIDS awareness. In addition we have constructed a large library and tools closet where people can access books and equipment to continue developing their skills from home. In the longer-term the centre hopes to offer art classes and IT training, as well as establish youth groups for kids and community development sessions for people of all ages.

The emphasis is on sustainable development, and through the sale of crops (primarily) the centre aims to be financially self-sufficient within 2 - 5 years of construction. Within this time, ownership will be passed on in full to representatives of the communities involved.

The centre lies between two secondary schools and a number of primary schools. Secondary schools in the north are fairly remote: each one is a walking distance of about one and a half hours from the centre, which is not considered long by locals. The north of Malawi is lagging behind the south in terms of urbanised development, hence basic infrastructure such as road systems and power grids is scare at best. Consequently, students are greatly lacking the materials necessary for education, ranging from critical scientific equipment to basic items such as chalk and board dusters. Upon entering adulthood, many are left unemployed with no real potential for job opportunities.

The aim is to tackle this by providing useful and relevant education so that people can start to better their lives by sharing knowledge and implementing income generating activities specific to their surrounding environment.

Who is involved?

Nyumba ya Masambiro has four target areas that are all located in Nkhata Bay North: Ruarwe, Khondowe, Bunga and Banda. None of these areas have roads, power or a doctor, and only the latter two enjoy phone reception, albeit extremely limited!

In July 2009 Rosa (project co-ordinator and founder of Phunzira) went to Malawi to start off this project, and since then we have hired numerous permanent members of staff as well as provided short term work for many hundreds of people during the construction phase. We currently have two managers, two gardeners, two cleaners, one librarian and two watchman working with us full-time, as well as two carpenters helping with interior decoration for the library and life skills room. All are from Nyumba ya Masambiro's target areas.

The centre is supported by three separate bodies: a board of trustees, an executive committee and an advisory board.

Trustees:
There are four trustee members that hold the assets of the centre in their name: two are trustee members of Phunzira and their role is only a temporary one until ownership of the centre is handed over (Rosa Jacobs & Jonny Jacobs), and two are from the Nkhata Bay North region (Victor Msowoya & Kabitto Nyasulu).

Executive Committee:
This committee consists of ten members of the local community from our four target areas. Most are Village Headmen (VH), Group Village Headmen (GVH) or people involved in educational development. They are working very closely with the staff to ensure the centre's long-term success. Their primary role is to support the staff by informing them of the changing demands of the community that they have been employed to serve (making sure that our programmes and classes remain relevant in the long-term), as well as helping the centre to achieve its objectives in the target areas outside Ruarwe by disseminating information and locating land that can be used on a temporary basis to run agricultural and other life skills sessions.

Advisory Board:
The board currently has ten members, most of whom are affiliated to government such as the MP for Nkhata Bay North, the Traditional Authorities (TA) and Sub-Traditional Authorities (STA) representing the target areas, the District Educational Officer (DEO), District Development Officer (DDO), District Health Officer (DHO) and Primary Education Authority (PEA). Their primary role is to ensure that the centre has the necessary support from government in order to register with the relevant departments (i.e. Social Welfare Office, Community Development Office etc.), as well as assist the centre in the longer-term by providing information concerning the government's developmental plans in the region (e.g. introducing power grids, erecting phone masts etc.).