By Mary Sichali

Karonga, November 9, Mana: Kindernothilfe (KNH) Malawi and Zimbabwe Programme Manager, Katharina Baumgarten has expressed her organisation's continued support for efforts to provide children with a good start in life through education.

Baumgarten said this on Friday in Karonga during an interface meeting to evaluate progress of different development projects funded by KNH and implemented by Future Planning for the Child (FPC) in four primary schools in the area of Senior Chief Kilupula.

"I have seen that in Karonga, FPC has done a great job improving the quality of education through gathering influential stakeholders in the sector to ensure effective results in the future of the children," Baumgarten said.

“Seeing government officials, local stakeholders, community leaders and parents sit down and offer a listening ear to the children airing out the challenges they face in their schools and provide feedback on the projects was very incredible,” she added.

She said it showed that FPC has done a great job in creating a space for the children and bringing all the stakeholders together to encourage and support the children to stand up for themselves and represent their fellow children.

On his part, Director of Administration at Karonga District Council Steve Chima hailed FPC for organising the meeting to allow stakeholders to hear from the children themselves and take action.

“We will use our own means to implement the projects like building toilets and girls changing rooms by writing project proposals to partners and well-wishers to assist in the endeavor," Chima said.

Executive Director for FPC, Amos Chindamba appreciated stakeholders for sparing their time to listen and suggest possible interventions to address the educational needs of children.

“Today we were looking at the reports from four primary schools and we have witnessed some progress. However, there are still gaps that need to be filled to improve the quality of education for our children. I believe through this meeting, action will be taken to address the gaps", Chindamba said.

Kindernothilfe (KNH) is a charity organization founded in 1959 by a group of Christians in Duisburg, Germany, in order to help needy children in India. Over time, it has become one of the largest Christian organizations in Europe for children's aid across the World.