September 2024NewsletterNews from the Valley 2024 began with some big challenges and many of those challenges have continued throughout the year. The poor rainy season has not only led to large areas of drought and hunger, but this has also heavily impacted electricity in the country. Lake Kariba, Zambia's main source of hydro-electric power, has been closed down due to low water levels, resulting in over 17-hour power outages every day. Despite that we continue to make huge progress this year:
It has been such a pleasure to welcome so many new faces and old friends back to the Valley this year, and thank you deeply for your kind support. Without you we could not do a fraction of what we do! Developing For the Future In what has probably been our most ambitious project to date, we have made huge strides in developing a new Centre for Learning and Sport in the heart of Mfuwe... The Centre will house our Foundation Programme, a project that seeks to improve our student's confidence, skills in ICT, English and critical thinking, as well as life skills such as budgeting and organisational planning. This year we have supported 23 students (instead of 12) and also began offering a space for underprivileged young people to study a degree online. In addition to the incredible education benefits that we can offer at the new site, we have also been reaching out to surrounding communities to ensure that the project is truly reflecting the needs of local people. Some of the feedback we received and that we hope to incorporate as the project develops includes:
How Can You Help? If you would like to be a part of this incredible project and help us to offer a never before seen resource in South Luangwa, then please visit our Justgiving donation page here. In addition please see our Pitch in for Progress section below, for more information on our exciting fundraiser to cover the distance between Glasgow and Mfuwe by Christmas! Also please check out our video here talking more about the JK Centre for Learning and Sport -> Early Years Literacy After taking on the very successful reading programme from Raise a Smile at the end of last year, we are thrilled to announce the opening of a new library at Malimba! Poor literacy levels are a huge problem in rural areas of Zambia like South Luangwa, with less than half of all adults being able to read. The issue is compounded by the switch from local language (Nyanja) in Grade 5 to having all lessons taught in English language only. Our reading programme focuses on early years literacy and bringing the joy of reading to hundreds of school children every week. With the incredible support of Africa Hope Fund, we have now been able to reopen an old library at Malimba Primary School now taking our number of reading centres to six! We see an average of 1,000 kids a week at the centres and run upwards of 5,000 sessions per library each month. We offer kids a chance to learn in class in a more interactive way, while supporting teachers with resources and helping to lower pupil to teacher ratios Pitch in for Progress As part of our new Learning Centre we are launching an ambitious fundraising campaign! Starting on September 1st we've challenged ourselves (and you!) to collectively move 12,363km - the distance from Glasgow, Scotland to Mfuwe, Zambia - by Christmas. Opportunities in rural Zambia are often few and far between, particularly when it comes to the chance for kids and the community to enjoy sport. Football is the most watched sport in Zambia, but players suffer serious injuries and even broken legs playing on uneven and pot holed pitches. Recognising the transformative power of sports, particularly in the lives of young people therefore, we are working to introduce a dedicated venue for Learning and Sport in the heart of South Luangwa. As part of this facility we want to create an 11-a-side grass football pitch, providing a safe and fun playing area for all 5,000 residents of Mambwe district to enjoy. As Project Luangwa, our trustee Ade Coley and CEO Ian Macallan will be running the 26km distance from the airport to the National Park gate, with support from other Project Luangwa staff along the way. I just wish we'd decided to this before the Dry Season! 🥵😅 To support us in our goal please visit - https://www.gofundme.com/f/bqvx5j-pitch-in-for-progress If you are a keen runner/cyclist/walker or swimmer then you can also help us to reach our total distance by signing up to Challenge Hound! As of today we have completed 9% of the target, but we still need your help to get across the finish line! Thanks for everyone who has supported so far 🙏🏻 The Future of Our Stove Project Our Eco-Stove project has hugely expanded this year, seeing us build 3,072 stoves and plant 1,294 trees. Our project is not just about building more stoves, but about ensuring long term, meaningful change in daily practices. Unfortunately the project was thrown into jeopardy earlier this year by the withdrawal of C-Quest Capital from all of their stove projects across Africa. As the global carbon market comes under greater scrutiny, we feel it is crucial to consider why our project is so important. South Luangwa is one of the few remaining areas of pristine habitat that supports the world’s largest population of African Wild Dogs. This landscape is increasingly under threat, not just from deforestation, but from the severe effects of climate change. Our stove project plays a critical part in saving woodland and decreasing carbon emissions, but also works to educate communities on why this matters. Our project also supports users on a human level. It is predominantly women and children who suffer the most from collecting wood in dangerous locations, and it is children who are in the greatest danger from horrific burns or loss of life from open fires. Together we are working to change mindsets, making saving trees and using less wood a part of routine life. We are extremely grateful for the support of organisations like Elephant Charge and Expert Africa in allowing the project to continue this year, and hopefully with their help we will see the project develop even more strongly in the future. Confidence for Young Women Our Youth Clubs are one of the key ways we support gender equality in South Luangwa, yet the quiet work we do on this front is often hard to quantify. We have really noticed the difference over the past few years between girls (and boys) who have attended our Clubs, and those who have not. The levels of confidence, maturity, agency and critical thinking are all significantly higher in children and young people who have regularly attended and we can see the difference this work is having in combatting harmful cultural practices. We still see girls being exploited every day. The all too apparent evils of poverty often see families actively encouraging girls into danger. While our work can sometimes feel like a drop in the ocean, we are also pleased to see the success we've had for girls who have been able to choose a different path and stand up for their rights. By working through our clubs, as well as projects like our Foundation Programme and hopefully upcoming Crisis and Counselling Service as part of the JK Centre, will continue to increase our efforts in providing girls with a brighter future across South Luangwa. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this project, but in particular Stella Pirie, Global Sojourns Giving Circle and the For Women Foundation. Together we are making a difference. A huge thank you to Stella and Tony for allowing us to put solar power into our Clubhouse this year! South Luangwa - Connecting Tourism, Community and Conservation Not only is South Luangwa famed for its natural beauty and wildlife, the people and communities of Mfuwe are the true heart of what makes this place so spectacular. It is so great to welcome visitors back to the valley, particularly as the challenges of the past few years are still fresh in the mind. The return of tourists continues to not only provide a critical boost to the local economy, it also means that much needed school donations are once again getting through to us. We have been able to donate chalk, pens, pencils, maths supplies, sports equipment, menstrual hygiene pads, underwear, reading glasses and electronic items to so many schools and communities as a result of the incredible generosity of our guests. Thank you so much for all that you do. Visitors to our Craft Shop and Café also provide vital revenue to the Project, with 100% of the proceeds going back into our programmes. In addition the local craftspeople that we support by providing a platform for their goods have been able to make a living wage from their art. We'd especially like to mention Pack for a Purpose, who do so much to organise supplies being brought out to schools, communities and children in need. In addition Expert Africa have been incredibly generous in their support, donating $10 to our Eco-Stove Project after every review they receive from a visitor. As the new season begins, it is so good to see everyone again, and we hope that this will continue into next year and beyond! How Can you Help? For those who would like to get involved, there are a number of initiatives we are currently raising funds for. These include:
If you would like to donate even a small amount for any of the above projects then please follow the link here, or email info@projectluangwa.org. Thank you so much for your support! In addition, for those visiting the valley please check out Pack for a Purpose's website, as any donations are so gratefully received. Thank you to everyone who continues to support us, your generosity is having such a positive effect on the lives of disadvantaged children and communities. Thank you! We continue to be humbled by the incredible support from all of our donors. It is so wonderful to welcome everyone back to the valley, and we are truly indebted to everyone who has donated or provided school supplies for disadvantaged children during their trip. We're also incredibly grateful to the organisations that have supported us for so long and the new individuals and donors who have supported us this year. In addition, the commitment of our lodges to support local communities has continued to be outstanding. Without the critical relationship between tourism-community-conservation, then South Luangwa would fail to exist as we know it, and we are so grateful to all our members, Flatdogs Camp, Robin Pope Safaris, Kafunta Safaris, Shenton Safaris, Green Safaris Shawa River Camp, and Chichele Safaris Puku Ridge. As always we can't thank all of our child sponsors enough, for allowing disadvantaged children the opportunity of an education. If you'd like to know more details about this, then please take a look at our website. We're also incredibly thankful to the Patel Family for driving our incredible DigiLearn project, and to Africa Hope Fund for allowing us to implement our reading programme. In addition the generosity of the Pirie, Mills and Nelde families, as well as the For Women Foundation, has been unbelievable in allowing for expansion of both the Foundation Programme, Gender Youth Clubs and DigiLearn. Thank you also to Terry Ashton, and Linda and Mark Geery for your recent donations to the JK Centre. With your help and generosity we can continue to support education and gender equality across a broad spectrum of projects, giving some of the most vulnerable in our society the opportunity for a better life. If you would like to know more about our activities then please click here or look below for a link to our annual reports. A special thank you to Livingstone Foundation, Chiawa Trust, Lyons Trust, and the Patel, Freisenbuch, Holmes and Mills Families for their high level support of our projects and students. Was great to see many of you in the valley this month and hope to see more of you soon! As always, we are also so grateful to everyone who has chosen to sponsor a student or donate to one of our programmes. You are the reason we are able to continue our work in South Luangwa and help to empower the people living here. The good you do cannot be overstated. Thank you If you would like to get involved, or continue to support Project Luangwa and all of our programs, please click one of the links below. Visit our website for more info www.projectluangwa.org Project Luangwa is proudly supported by local Member Lodges: |