‘The school library at Mayega Primary School is the best in Busega District’. This is not the idle boast made by headteacher Ernest Damiano but a stark reflection on the facilities in the district’s schools. It would not surprise us at all if no other primary school had a library.

So, why is the situation so much better? It started through the close links forged between Mayega and Lhanbryde Primary School in Moray. The Scottish school donated two full reading schemes and Busega Scotland trustee Jenny Wallen arranged an air shipment to Tanzania. These resources are now in the fledgling Mayega library. The bookshelves were paid for by pupils fundraising in Lhanbryde.
The Tanzanian school is relocating desks into their library to create a quiet reading space. It will be directly supervised by the teacher responsible for academic progress, who will work in the library. The room doesn’t have a door yet but Ernest plans get one from selling the school’s cotton crop!

Further books have arrived, following a shopping trip by Ernest and Christine to bookshops in Mwanza. Many different types were purchased; dictionaries, text books and reading books, with some in English and others in Kiswahili. The funds came from a London IT company and their staff.
Despite what seems a modest injection of resources, Ernest is predicting an improvement in his pupils grades over the next few years. For Mayega, the library is a significant step forward but sadly for primary schools in Mayega District, it is a unique one.

We are delighted to announce the appointment Emmanuel Donard as Patron of Mayega Children’s Centre. His responsibilities are the care of the male children and, as a qualified teacher, he will support Mwalimu Renidius with afternoon school and homework. He qualified last year from Murutunguru Teacher’s College at certificate level (1st class) in early child care and education. Unable to get a permanent job (which at present is particularly difficult for young teachers), he worked in a Mwanza school voluntarily. Originally from Mayega village, his younger brother was cared for at the Centre. We are delighted to have Emmanuel on board.

‘This was the work of Pascali!’. It didn’t take long for former Mayega resident, Hasani, to work out who had introduced Simba (Lion) to the Children’s Centre. It had been a surprise to John and Christine that he was there and a bit of a dilemma.

However, on balance, having a dog to care for was seen as another learning opportunity for the children. Lion has been vaccinated and will be wormed shortly. His carers, Pascali and Ibrahim, have been carefully coached and Lion is proving to have a very calm temperament. He ‘suffered’ his first flea shampoo with amazing patience! Karibu Simba!

It is always good to see current and former Moving-on students. A visit and a chat is a real treat. One character in the Moving-on group is Lukondya, who is in his third year of motor mechanics at Kalwande College. His spoken English has come on leaps and bounds, and he is always keen to tell us that he is ‘very serious’ with his studies. His catchphrase rhetoric lives up to reality. He is number 1 in his class in mechanics, theory and practical. Lukondya’s visits always brighten up the day.

One of our mechanics graduates, Hasan, visited the office for an ‘old times sake’ chat with our secretary, Kabula. Both lived at Mayega Children’s Centre, and after passing through Moving-on are now in the world of work. Hasan is a driver for a family and he supplements this with casual work, making car seat covers and some garage work.
His main employment arose from a chance encounter in the street. A lady’s car had broken down and Hasan offered to help. He got the car going and was asked to drive it home in case of further problems. So impressed was the lady, that she introduced Hasan to her husband and the rest, as they say, is history. Well done, Hasan.

If we are asked, ‘what is the most important thing about Mayega Children’s Centre?’, we are quick to reply, ‘it brings hope to children that have had none’. The children can think about their futures and not just live (and survive) the day. As the basics are now in place, we can think about what will make the Centre a better place to live and how the children can participate in the improvements.
Our trees are a case in point. Over 80 have been planted, when hedging plants are included and they are doing incredibly well. The passion fruit hedge is the standout. We have had very few failures. The children are responsible for watering and caring. We have just ordered manure and black soil to be delivered and each tree is protected by chicken wire.
The aim of the ‘tree garden’ is to improve the look of the Centre and provide much needed shade. We have one tree near the gate, known affectionately as the ‘big tree’. In a way that is very typically African, all important meetings are conducted there with, invariably, a cooling breeze. As we all know, ‘someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree long ago’. That is why we are doing it.

Busega Scotland has entered a team for the Kiltwalk in Edinburgh on 15th September.
This forms part the charity’s 5-year celebrations.
One very exciting initiative that we have developed in 2019, connects Mayega Primary School and Mayega Children’s Centre.
The school has 950 pupils and only 10 teachers. Busega Scotland is currently employing an extra teacher, to work in the morning at the School and in the evening at the Centre. For the Centre, the aim is to boost attainment, particularly by using English. The positive effects are already beginning to show through in examination results.

The priority for funds raised in the Kiltwalk will be to keep the teaching support going. Any balance will be spent on improving facilities at the Centre and directly on the children. There is much to do.
Please help us celebrate 5 years of Busega Scotland and take its vital work forward by
Joining John and the Busega Scotland team on the walk – for details please contact John on [email protected]

Donating through John’s fundraising page (whatever he raises will have 40% added to it by Kiltwalk)
https://edinburghkiltwalk2019.everydayhero.com/uk/john-14

The Kiltwalk website is https://www.thekiltwalk.co.uk
Thank you.

Christine and John have enjoyed their first full day visit to Mayega Children’s Centre on their current trip to Tanzania. It was a joy for us to be back among friends and to see the children looking so well and happy. It is hard not always to reflect back on how the situation was in 2014, on our first visit. The children were lethargic, hungry and poorly cared for, if at all. This was not the fault of the staff but the organisation with responsibility for Centre was moribund.
Now we have bright, energetic children who are full of life. This has been teamwork – Centre staff, volunteers, trustees, donors and supporters.
The news about Susie who used to called Shida,  is very good indeed. She has been enrolled in Mayega Primary School and sits right at the front of the class.  After Standard 1 she is likely to move to Standard 3, as she is a bright girl and eager to learn. We also took along a ball with bells inside it so she can play games with the other children. Her hand eye co-ordination is good and catching the ball is no problem when she knows it is coming to her.
The education at the Centre is being supported by Mwalimu (teacher)Mr  Renidius, who we share with Mayega Primary School. This initiative will be supported by the efforts of the Busega Scotland’s team in the Edinburgh Kiltwalk on 15th September.

It is with great joy that we can announce the birth of Golden, the baby boy of our Assistant Project Leader, Julieth Godwin. Golden, whose name is pronounced Gordon, was born on 2nd July and weighed 7.5 lbs. Both mum and Golden are doing very well and have been visited at home by Busega Scotland staff, to offer our congratulations.

Christine had the honour of being Julieth’s birthing partner and was up all night, with Golden being born just after four in the morning. While Julieth is on maternity leave, our Secretary, Kabula Peter, will hold some additional responsibilities, particularly for the Family Support Project and working with the younger children at Mayega.   Hongera, Julieth, and karibu sana, Golden!

John and Christine are back in their ‘second home’, as the Busega Scotland work goes on apace. Unusually, the Carneys did not travel directly to Mwanza but spent time with their family in Northern Tanzania. Starting out in Kilimanjaro district and then down through the Serengeti and Ngorongoro to Lake Victoria. The Tanzanian national parks are breath-taking and the Ngorongoro caldera is one of the real wonders of the world.

The news from our projects is also encouraging. All the boys who graduated as mechanics/drivers this year are in some form of employment. The school results for Mayega Children’s Centre pupils have been good and much preparatory work is underway to improve the water facilities in Mayega village. These are merely tasters, and further details will appear on the website over the next month – internet connection permitting!