ACTION CARD BRIEFING - OCTOBER 2004
Racecourse is a compound or township on the
outskirts of Kitwe in Zambia. It is in the Copperbelt
- a once affluent area of the country. But now most of the mines
have closed and there is no employment.
The people of Racecourse are amongst the poorest in Zambia
- about 25000 people live in the compound, many of whom are
suffering from hunger, malnutrition and HIV/AIDS. There was a growing
problem with street children and in 1999,
three of the residents, concerned about the vulnerability of these
children, decided to do something about it. They decided to start a
school - a school with a difference - a free school that would be
open to all the children who wanted to come along.
Of these three people, none were trained teachers,
and only one had been able to complete their own education. They were
all unemployed. It would have been easy for them to lose hope and
give up. But they didn't. Instead they decided to share what
education they did possess with the children of their community and in
so doing try and keep them off the streets. They rented a building,
registered themselves as a community school and invited the local
children to come and learn. At the beginning people said that the
project would not work.
But four years later, with the support of the local
theological college, that school now has over 1,000 pupils attending
in three, three hour shifts. A few more volunteers have been
recruited to help with the teaching and the school has been allocated
a plot of ground by the government and with the assistance of a
Lecturer in Architecture at the nearby Copperbelt University detailed
plans have been drawn up for the construction of 4 classroom blocks. The next task is for the community to make the bricks for the new
school buildings. The school relies almost entirely on the local
theological college and the church for donations to purchase the most
basic equipment. And through their support of the school the church
are helping to generate new life in a community decimated by poverty,
unemployment and HIV/AIDS. This is just one of the many examples of
what can happen when the church gets involved in the world of action. It also demonstrates the dedication of ordinary people transforming
their own community.
The Board of World Mission of the Church of
Scotland is one of the UK Partner Churches of the United Church of
Zambia and supports this project through staff based at the United
Church of Zambia Theological College, Kitwe.
Please send a card of support for this community
project to:
Mr Ringthone Mumba
Headmaster
Racecourse Community School
P.O. Box 280 180
Kitwe
Republic of Zambia
