UPDATE - an overview of what's been happening during the last two years
Beit Trust House has provided a home to 12 more children. Rooms were painted in bright colours by a British couple who were spending a couple of months at Mutende to help over 2005-6. A new housemother and assistant housemother were appointed who are excellent carers. The children have been in their new home since summer 2006 so are really settled in now as a family unit. Along with the other Mutende workers, they have received training from social services course providers in child development, child protection and best practice in the care of orphaned children.
Also in 2006 a child development worker was appointed to take particular responsibility for the emotional and educational development and pastoral care of each child. He has individual time with the children and involvement with the housemothers in educational and practical issues around
child development.
Local children have been enjoying playing with their friends at Mutende on Saturdays, particularly using the on site climbing frame and play equipment that is not common in Zambia. Over Easter 2007 a team from Swansea in South Wales came to run a holiday club for Mutende children and local school friends.
The Mutende fundraiser has been successful in persuading local businesses to give helpful gifts in kind and has secured some cash funds, but is finding it most profitable to spend time managing Mutende’s new self-sufficiency projects - hen husbandry and the farm on the outskirts of Chingola. Egg sales and consumption and maize and vegetable crops have helped reduce the cash expenditure on food in 2007. The number of hens at Mutende was doubled thanks to funds raised by Athlone Institute of Technology in Ireland. The Chingola copper mine KTM has also donated 300 chickens to Mutende for rearing for sale.
All children are continuing to receive regular medical care and where necessary treatment for HIV. Two will be taking their final school exams this year.
Negotiations are almost finalised with the local council to allow Mutende to develop a piece of adjacent land on which a nursery classroom and library/homework room will be built. The majority of the building costs have been raised by people in Swansea through generous gifts and creative and fun fundraising efforts. Moving the classroom and library out of Rachel James and ABC family units will allow more space to accommodate children in these homes and its position on the edge of the children’s village enables Mutende to share it with the people of Lulamba.