Fisherman’s Rest, who run a beautiful lodge in southern Malawi, and also set up and run sustainable and ethical community projects, have a uplifting story to share. Written in their own words, find out how their work and the generous donations they receive is transforming education i their region as they celebrate the graduation of a group of Malawian students.
“Where has the time gone? In 2019 Horton CDSS opened its doors to 50 Form 1 students. It was a HUGE moment. Not only did these 50 students have their walk-to-school time slashed in half (or more!), but 50 more places were up for grabs.
Only 6-8% of students in rural Malawi complete secondary school. We estimate that the secondary places available only serve around 10% of the students in the educational zone.** With 90% of students in rural primary schools dropping out, or not successfully securing a secondary school position. And this includes the boost that Horton CDSS gave the area.
Malawi has a long way to go in serving young people with enough secondary education places. Fast forward 4 years, and let’s celebrate with the Horton Pioneers!
Here they are (pictured above):
They were a blaze of green in leavers t-shirts, collecting prizes, accolades and plenty of hugs. Now we are sitting tight, sucking in our cheeks and anxiously drumming our fingers across the table, waiting for examination results! Joining us are 7 sponsored young people, hopping from one foot to the other in anticipation!
Without the funding from the CDSS sponsorship programme, these incredible Horton Pioneers would’ve fallen into the 90% of non-finishers. So a monumental thank you to our sponsors. After the ceremony, Henry Chinkunda gave an appreciation speech. Catch it here.
Longtime friends and volunteers Helen and Jelena were in Malawi for the celebration and wrote a first-hand account of their experience of the day! From sitting under trees and meeting dignitaries, to feasting at Fishermans with the staff and teachers, they said it all.
Find out more about this special day along with the project here. If you want to be a sponsor for 2024 Form 1 intake in September, at £10 a month – please give us your expression of interest here. And finally, to find out more about Fisherman’s Rest and their projects, visit our dedicated page here.
**Stat clarification
There are 1,200 government secondary school places, Form 1- 4. There are approximately 16,500 learners in primary school, Standard 1 – 8. Only 30% finish primary.
30% is 4,950 primary school leavers fighting for 1,200 Secondary Places.
– Data taken from UNICEF 2022 Malawi Education Report
