By Blackson Mkupatira

Dedza, August 23, Mana: Dedza District Council Chief Education Officer, Julius Kamwanza, has hailed Edukans Foundation for a teacher mentorship project the organization is implementing in the in the district, saying it has reduced knowledge gap between teachers that have been in the system for long and those just coming from college.

Kamwanza made the remarks recently when Edukans donated five tablet phones to two secondary schools and three primary schools in the district under the school based blended education mentorship programme being implemented with funding from UNICEF.

He said while long serving teachers have experience, those that are coming from college have new sets of skills and that Edukans is providing a platform where they could share experiences and trends within education circles through mentorship.

"And we have seen great improvements in the 65 schools the organization is working with in the district. There is punctuality and a reduction in school dropout rate among learners, improved pass rate and a good working relationship between teachers," he said.

He appealed to Edukans to consider scaling up the project to target all 254 schools in the district and asked teachers to take good care of the gadgets and to share the knowledge they are gaining from the project with their fellow teachers so that they could move in unison.

Commenting on the matter, Headmaster for Kapesi Primary School Joseph Mtalimanja said the project has been fundamental in enhancing teaching skills and strengthening the relationship between teachers, learners and the community.

On the tablets, the headmaster said many teachers do not have smartphones so they will be using them for searching for relevant information on the internet.

On his part, Edukans Foundation Fundraising and Partnership Officer Daniel N'gona said the mentorship programme is targeting one thousand primary and secondary school teachers in Dedza with the overall goal of improving learning outcomes for students and promoting job satisfaction among teachers.

"Today as a pilot, we are giving five schools tablets so that they could easily access mentorship information online to mentor each other and students," he said, adding that this will improve the quality of education in the district.

The 10-month mentorship project is also being implemented in Salima, Dowa, Lilongwe, Nsanje, Chiladzulu, Thyolo, Machinga and Mangochi.

By Maryam Mtengulah

Blantyre, August 19, Mana: Blantyre District Acting Social Welfare Officer, Irene Lakudzala has urged people in the district to take responsibility of ensuring that technology is being used as a vessel for advocating and protecting the rights of children in the district.

Lakudzala said this on Friday during the commemoration of day of the African child which was held at Tafika Primary School in the area of Traditional Authority Lundu.

The commemoration involved hundreds of children from Tafika Primary School, Katete Primary School, and Milale Primary School under the theme ‘The Rights of the Child in the Digital Environment’.

“Blantyre District Council is concerned with how technology is violating the rights of children by exposing them to bad behaviors including pornography and violent behavior. We are therefore linking with different stakeholders to implement activities that will help against digital abuse so that our children should grow with good morals,” said Lakudzala.

Speaking on the same, Director of Step Kids Awareness, God knows Maseko said the negative impacts of technology on children should not be overlooked and therefore advised parents, leaders, and the government to join hands in advocating and raising awareness on how technology can assist children instead of destroying them.

In an interview with one of the pupils, Daniel Kasimu urged his fellow children to stay away from technological activities which may result to moral decadence and that they must seek guidance from their parents before utilizing the digital space to ensure that their good morals are kept intact.

The commemoration began with a big walk which was followed by pupils’ performances including drama, debates, speeches, and dances.

By Aliko Munde

Chitipa, August 17, Mana: Senior Chief Mwabulambya on Thursday donated a goat to a 2022 national best teacher, Tionge Mtambo who head teacher for Tondola Primary School in Chitipa District.

In 2022 Mtambo was a lone teacher in standard 8 at Nahayombo Primary School where all her 36 learners were selected to various district secondary schools in Chitipa District.

Senior Chief Mwabulambya said he decided to donate the goat to Mtambo as a way of appreciating her hard work and as a motivation to her and other teachers.

The Senior Chief said teachers especially those in rural areas need to be encouraged as they face more challenges.

"It is the responsibility of all stakeholders, like traditional leaders, communities, parents and government to work together and promote quality education in the district and the country as a whole," Senior Chief Mwabulambya said.

Mtambo has thanked Senior Chief Mwabulambya for the donation, which she said will go a long way in alleviating some of the challenges the current school is facing.

"I am going to start goat farming and after multiplying I will sell some to address some of the challenges the school is facing.

“The donation has ignited my morale and I have been motivated. Come next year I will produce good results with the learners I have so far," she said.

Mtambo then encouraged fellow teachers to take teaching as a calling in order to improve education standards in the country.

District Commissioner for Chitipa, McMillan Magomero said quality education starts at households and community level hence the need to work hand in hand with teachers to promote quality education.

"Awards motivate teachers and we will see how best we can do and improve on that one," he said.

By Margret Praise Kalua

Nkhata Bay, 16 August, Mana: Nkhata Bay District Commissioner (DC) Rodgers Newa has attributed the district's outstanding perfomance in the just released Primary School Leaving Certifcate Education (PSLCE) Examinations results to good resource management and teamwork.

The DC said this Wednesday during a press briefing at the council chamber where he also emphasised the need to defend children’s rights to education by addressing all their educational needs.

Nkhata Bay has emerged on position 1 in the just released PSLCE results in the country, achieving a 97 percent pass rate.

Newa said;"Good investment in primary school education is the basis and key foundation for quality education in Malawi. We want to maintain these standards to emerge on top all the time and we have what it takes since this is not the first time."

"For us to be achieving this, the council uses excellent resource management and collaborative efforts among key stakeholders in the district together with teachers who are doing a tremendous job,"he added.

“We were on position 1 in 2021, then we backslided a bit emerging on position 2 last year and this year we are the best so we will maintain that calibre of performance as we all understand that it also contributes to achieving of Malawi Vision 2063 Agenda,” explained Newa.

On his part, Nkhata Bay District Director of Education, Youth and Sports Muhabi Chivunga said the secret behind their success is through coordination, administration of standardised terminal tests and fair distribution of teachers.

“Coordination has brought team work. While standardized tests and rewards have triggered competition among learners and teachers in so doing, syllabuses are completed on time and learners work hard,” Chivunga explained.

He has however bemoaned the shortage of female teachers in some schools.

Councillor Cyria Adamana Nyamwera pledged to continue working hand in hand with parents and other key stakeholders to make sure that human resource in the education sector is effectively utilised in the provision of quality education.

By Ernest Mfunya

Mangochi, August 16, Mana: Malawi National Association of the Deaf (MANAD) has equipped Early Childhood Development (ECD) Caregivers in Mangochi with sign language skills for proper delivery of special needs education in the ECD centres.

Speaking Tuesday during the end of a three-day training, which drew caregivers from eight ECD centres in the area of Traditional Authority (TA) Mponda, MANAD Project Coordinator Sekerani Kufakwina said promotion of basic sign language skills in ECD centres can help eradicate challenges that caregivers encounter when teaching learners who have hearing problems.

Kufakwina said most ECD caregivers in the country have no capacity to deal with special needs children.

“We conducted the training in order to ensure that children who are deaf have access to quality education at an early stage just like any other child who is born with no any disability.

"Additionally, we have also provided the caregivers with the teaching materials such as dictionaries and sign language books where they can refer whenever they are teaching,” he said.

Oone of the care givers Florence Time described the training as important saying it has helped them to improve levels of communication.

"I want to commend MANAD for organising the training. I urge them to continue with the interventions so that it reaches many caregivers in the district and in turn promote sign language skills in the country," said Time.

MANAD is implementing a seven-month project called, “Promoting Accessible Malawian Sign Language Books” in Mangochi, Phalombe, and Lilongwe districts.

The project, which is being done with funding from World Vision, United States Agency International Development and Australian government is, among others, distributing gadgets like tablets that are loaded with sign language books to help special needs education teachers, parents of children who are deaf and ECD caregivers.

By Tabbu Kitta Kauye

Lilongwe, August 15, Mana: President Dr Lazarus Chakwera is impressed with the work that the Malawi National Examinations Board (MANEB) is doing in ensuring that examinations are administered without leakage and corruption.

President Chakwera made the remarks Tuesday at Capital Hill in Lilongwe, where he spent the day working in his office.

Chakwera arrived at 8:30 in the morning and finished his work at 5:00 pm in the evening.

Speaking to journalists after his meetings, the president described the meetings he held with various ministries and institutions as fruitful.

Chakwera cited the meeting with the Ministry of Education and MANEB as a highlight saying officials reported to him the state of Primary School Leaving Certificate of Education and Junior Certificate of Education examination results.

“The fact that MANEB has taken my admonitions is impressive. I also commend them for leakage and scandal free examinations for four consecutive years.

“It is also impressive to note that 14 new schools are ready thereby increasing access to education. We are still far away from our target. However, we can still celebrate the small wins,” said President Chakwera.

The President also hailed MANEB for the E-payment initiative where candidates seating for MANEB examinations pay their examinations fees remotely through mobile money and the bank.

He said the E-payment is a good initiative in curbing corruption as such he encouraged other ministries, departments and agencies to follow suit.

The president also met with Ministers of Water and Sanitation, Abida Mia; Homeland Security, Ken Zikhale N’goma and the Speaker of National Assembly, Catherine Gotani Hara.

Mana/tkk/pk

Blantyre, August 15, Mana: Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (MUBAS) has launched the first ever Research and Innovation Week which aims at bringing awareness to the nation about research and innovations that the institution is undertaking.

Speaking to Malawi News Agency (MANA) on Monday after the launch, Vice Chancellor of the university, Nancy Chitera said MUBAS is working towards achieving the vision of being a research intensive, innovative and entrepreneurial university.

“We need to bring awareness about research and innovations to the nation. Our members of staff and students should know that we have put these in place to help us move towards the vision that we have and this is in response to Malawi 2063.

“We are doing quite a lot of research and innovations, at the same time we are creating spaces and structures that should move us towards to our vision,” she said.

She added that MUBAS has come up with measures that will help the school to be on the global university rankings in the near future.

“To be there, there is need for a systematic approach. We have the space and structure that will help MUBAS appear on World University Rankings, and one of the structures that we have put in place is to develop research, market and other elements that can help MUBAS to be ranked the way we would want to be in the global rankings,” she said.

Acting Director General for National Commission for Science and Technology, Gift Kadzamira who was the guest of honour said Malawi, like many other countries, cannot achieve socioeconomic development without research and innovation.

Kadzamira added that the commission is working to ensure that all research and innovations are helping towards achieving the goals of the Malawi 2063.

"With all the research, innovations and technologies being proposed and advanced, we need to ensure that we are enhancing productivity in all sectors of the economy.

"Research helps countries to solve problems in many crucial areas including health, agriculture and education, among others. Solution based research and innovation in such areas can also help us achieve our vision as a nation," Kadzamira said.

The Research and Innovation Week is being held under the theme “Generating Knowledge and Innovations for Sustainable Development”.

Mana/gm/tv/

By Moses Nyirenda

Lilongwe, August 14, Mana: Association of Persons with Albinism (APAM) has emphasised on the need for government, through the Ministry of Education, to adopt initiatives that would promote inclusivity amongst learners with albinism in the country’s public primary, secondary and tertiary schools.

In an interview with Malawi News Agency (MANA), APAM President, Young Muhamba said learners with albinism are facing various challenges in the government learning institutions.

“A lot of persons with albinism are failing to access education at primary, secondary and tertiary level due to shortage of inclusive teachers, infrastructure challenges and also institutional as well as policy barriers,” Muhamba said.

He, therefore, asked government through the Ministry of Education to make initiatives that would help alleviate the challenges which learners with albinism are facing in schools.

“Yes there is need for more to be done including training more special needs teachers as well as ensuring that there are enough resources.

“We understand inclusive education is very expensive as it requires more resources, therefore, Ministry of Education should work with various donors to ensure that more resources are made available for inclusive education,” he said.

Recently, APAM engaged Ministry of Education where they discussed issues aimed at addressing challenges affecting the welfare of learners with albinism in the country’s public learning institutions.

In a separate interview, Chief Education Officer responsible for inclusive education, Peter Msendema said the ministry is making various efforts to address the challenges which learners with albinism are facing in schools.

“We are dealing with the challenges one by one. We started training teachers on how they can support learners with albinism.

“Again, we have advised District Edication Managers to set up a budget which they can use to buy sunscreen lotion for learners who need them,” Msendema said.

He said that as the ministry is also advising school authorities to facilitate construction of disability friendly infrastructure such as classrooms with enough lighting that would allow learners with albinism who have poor vision to see clearly when they are in class.

Mana/mcn/pk

By Winfrida Kamwana

Mchinji, August 14, Mana: National Initiative for Civic Education (NICE) Trust has embarked on orientation programs among community leaders in an effort to empower and bring awareness on the Malawi 2063 (MW2063).

Speaking at one of the orientation meetings which took place at Nyamawende in Mchinji, NICE Trust District Civic Education Officer, Emmanuel Banda said community leaders have a great role in making sure that government reaches its goals by leading their community members in the right direction.

“The fundamental role of these orientation meetings is to open the minds of leaders to lead by example in terms of development and integrity so that communities will be able to grow and develop,” said Banda.

Banda said if leaders understand their role in the MW2063 objectives and work towards achieving them, then government will find it easier to fulfil its goals.

“There is need for positive mindset change among leaders and community members for the country to achieve its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which means communities need to live by example in uplifting and achieving economic independence,” added Banda.

Group Village Headman Nyamawende appreciated NICE Trust for the interface stating that it will teach community members to do their part in uplifting the country’s economy.

“This orientation has come as a great teacher especially on the mindset change pillar because as leaders if we are bringing something positive in our respective homes then it will be easier for us to reach out to community members to develop their homes as well,” said Nyamawende.

NICE Trust is conducting the orientation in order to bring awareness to the general public on the MW2063 with a focus on mindset change.

The meeting is targeting Village Development Committees (VDCs), Area Development Committees (ADCs), traditional leaders and religious leaders, among others.

Mulanje, August 8, Mana: Education in Mulanje district is expected to improve with the coming in of Building Education Foundation through Innovation and Technology (BEFIT) program aimed at ending illiteracy among pupils in primary schools.

Mulanje District Chief Education Officer, Getrude Maliko said this on Monday during a full council meeting.

The program is targeting pupils from standards one to four.

Maliko said learners will be using tablets and headsets which will help them do better in mathematics, reading and writing as studies have shown a gap in those areas.

"All preparations for this program are ready and we have visited schools that are going to benefit from this program. What is remaining is to train teachers and relevant authorities on the use and care of the tablets," she explained.

Maliko has, therefore, asked community members and Parent Teacher – Association (PTA) to join hands with the Ministry of Education to make sure that the gadgets are being used for the intended purposes and are being taken care of.

In an interview one of the primary school teachers in Mulanje, Mphatso Malindima, commended the development saying it will ease teaching and help impart knowledge to pupils in the targeted schools especially in rural areas.

In the first year of the program in Mulanje, 19 public primary schools have been targeted.