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 International Novitiate
Lusaka, Zambia
The
presence of the novitiate in a city like Lusaka affords
many opportunities for collaborative formation with
religious of other orders and institutes. The Christian
Brothers, the Jesuits, and various other religious
communities have their houses of formation in Lusaka, 27
in total.
The
buildings, grounds, and agricultural development of the
novitiate property provide opportunities for the
novices, for workers, and for the Brothers of the
Province to use wisely the gifts that God has given
them.
Shitima Community School
Kabwe, Zambia
Shitima School grew from the hopes and dreams of the
Brothers living in the Zambian city of Kabwe who daily
saw street children ho are poor and without hope begging in the streets. Their goal was not
only to shelter and feed these youngsters but also to
provide them with an education and practical skills. A few years
back new land was purchased with several rundown
buildings. With the help of benefactors especially Mrs.
Julie Ugla of St. Albans, England new buildings are
being constructed and a school is rising to give hpe to
the children of Kabwe. The new site also
has enough land to allow for new gardens
to teach the children self-sufficiency.
Ninety students are currently enrolled at Shitima School. A
great number of children still remain on the streets of
Kabwe. The Brothers hope that with the assistance of
benefactors they can continue to enlarge this project
and give even more children hope for the future.
St.
Francis High School
Malole, Northern Province, Zambia
St.
Francis High School is a co-ed, rural "bush" institution with
an enrollment of 500 students, 20% of which are day
students and 80% are boarding students. The day students
are charged a fee of $100 a year and the boarders are
charged $140. These fees are a real burden for the
average Zambian family that earns only about $400
annually. Many students are not able to pay these fees
and need assistance. The school also receives from the
national government an annual subsidy of $2,500 dollars.
This amounts to about $5 dollars a year per student.
Presuming that all of the students pay their fees, the
annual school budget is about $66,000, or about $136
dollars per student. With this sum the school has to
cover all expenses such as food, shelter, school
supplies, electricity, water and other essential needs.
Despite the very restricted budget, St. Francis has done
exceptionally well in the national examinations. It was
the only school in the Northern Province of Zambia that
scored 100% pass rate at the grade 12 level, an achievement
shared by only 14 other schools in the entire nation.
Many of these students will be going on to university or
other institutions of higher learning. At grade 10, St.
Francis also achieved 100% pass. The students at this
level scored 80 points higher on average than other 10th
graders in the Northern Province. The staff at St.
Francis credit the support the school has received from
groups and individuals as one of the key reasons for
this success.
Cinci
Wa Babili
Malole, Norther Province, Zambia
This
agricultural self-help program, designed to assist poor
farmers in the Northern Province of Zambia, was founded
by Brother John Leon Beaudry. Currently Brother George
Poirier serves as the Director, with a full staff of
employees to assist him. The value and necessity of food
product is the focus of this program. The goal is to
make the Northern Province of Zambia a hunger-free zone
by teaching how to grow better crops and keep animals
safe and productive.
Environmental and
conservation efforts are also hallmarks of the program
in a country where scarce resources are stripped and not
restored or recultivated.
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