— as communities feel neglected
At first glance, one would mistake it for a remnant of a post-war institution. With classrooms stripped of desks, windows shattered, and children learning on bare floors, this is what 361 learners proudly call their school.
Established more than two decades ago, Damu Primary School in Balaka District has been operating for 25 years from makeshift classroom blocks constructed through community efforts — leaving hundreds of learners to study under harsh and unsafe conditions.
Until recently, the school, with classes from standard 1 to 8 had only one permanent classroom block built to ease congestion. Teachers, however, still live far from the institution as there are no staff houses within the vicinity.
With not a single desk available, all 361 learners sit on the floor during lessons, while a few bring mats from home to use as seats. Locals say the school has long been neglected, a situation that has demotivated children around Katuma Village from completing their primary education.
Chairperson of the School Management Committee, Saidi Amin, said lessons are often suspended whenever it rains or when strong winds blow.
“Due to the poor state of structures, we are forced to suspend classes for the sake of learners’ safety,” he said.
Echoing his sentiments, Sifoti Katsabola, the Primary Education Advisor (PEA) for Chembera Zone, lamented that the poor infrastructure has, for a long time, affected both learners’ performance and teachers’ willingness to work at the institution.
“We have a problem that whenever teachers are deployed here, they decline to come because of the lack of a conducive environment for both teaching and learning,” Katsabola explained.
In a bid to address these challenges, The Mlambe Project Malawi, with support from its counterpart in the United Kingdom, has constructed a modern classroom block at the school worth K63 million—a development that community members have hailed as both timely and transformative.
Senior Chief Sawali expressed gratitude for the new structure, saying it will help improve education standards in her area.
“This donation is a milestone as it is expected to boost levels of school attendance, especially for the girl child, who often drops out and ends up in early marriages due to poor learning conditions,” she said.
Andrew May-Miller, Trustees Manager for The Mlambe Project–United Kingdom, said the organisation decided to invest in the country’s education sector after learning of the many challenges that schoolchildren face. He disclosed that since its inception in 2012, the partnership has built 36 classroom blocks and 18 toilets across 17 schools in Balaka, but also teachers’ houses and one teachers’ development centre (TDC).
Meanwhile, Andrew Mateyu, Chairperson for The Mlambe Project Malawi Trustees, revealed that the trust will soon extend similar initiatives to Ntcheu District as part of its continued efforts to improve education infrastructure in Malawi.
