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Local report 30/07/2019 Filed by TAS PROJECT REPORT; 2018/9 Preamble Trusts for African Schools is a small UK charity working to improve the quality of education in poor government schools in a very remote areas, mainly in Kenya around Kora National Park and Mwingi National Reserve. See fig.1 TAS works in partnership with local school communities through Kenya Wildlife Services – KWS. For the last
9 years we have been supporting 13 schools; building classrooms, science labs,
dormitories, fences, libraries and supplying resources, educational trips and
other items. TAS is all about children education and their future. Getting appropriate education and life skills is eminently what this children need. This report gives a quick look of happenings that has been realised within the period June 2018 to June 2019 as well as the Project Coordinator’s run-abouts.
Overview report outline on:-
KEY - Green dots; existing partnership schools - Red dots; phased-out schools ( after 5-7 years partnership.
Specific Coordinator activities within the link role. 1. Assist the TAS supported schools to develop quality and sustainable school improvement. 2. Continue nurturing the Local school trusts to becoming strong fundraising tool in their respective schools. Encouragement of popular participation of the school community, professionals and other development partners. 3. Assist each school trust to develop projects and priority them for TAS funding and consequently, monitor implementation progress of those projects. 4. Work with Local school Trusts to establish mechanisms to respond to gender related school needs eg. Girl child education. 5. Participate in Inter -County education meetings and be an advocate for the TAS supported schools. 6. Assist each school to establish and maintain conservation/wildlife club. This is to promote conservation matters in the area as well as mitigating environmental degradation issues through simple school programs likes; planting of tress in school compound, promotion of conservation messages through poems, songs and essays. Currently, we are piloting an environmental program in one of our school (Kaseluni primary). 7. Keep Nurturing Local Trusts stability within the five phased out schools. 8. Maintain the link between School Local Trusts, Nairobi based trustees/treasurers (Team) and UK trust team. 9. Prepare and communicate relevant project reports /updates. Coordinator achievement during the period. ü Helped the partner schools to integrate conservation issues in their school development programs especially tree planting within their respective schools compounds. Kaseluni primary school is the main Pilot school for this venture. It is expected to scale up same in all TAS supported schools. The project is dubbed “ FOREST SCHOOLS” The package is, Fence the school, secure water source, plant appropriate tree seedlings and same time establish tree nursery within the school compound for the purposes of sustaining progressive planting of the trees at the school compound and surrounding school community. ü Quarterly briefing meetings with TAS local external school trusts at Nairobi. These trustees mainly stay at Nairobi and they help the school in managing their finances; paying contractors on behalf of the school. Occasionally the trustees visit their respective schools and have opportunity of interacting with the local trustees. ü In June 2018 TAS Coordinator attended and participated in TAS Trustee meeting in UK. He presented to the Trustees ground stories on TAS-KWS project outcomes and gave Trustees an opportunity to engage on one-on-one with him. ü TAS Coordinator visited each of the seven schools at least once per month to assist the local trusts on planning and implementation of school Projects. The Coordinator doesn’t make decision for the LSTs but advice. It’s upon the respective schools to come up with their real needs and prioritise them.
ü Met relevant County government Ministers and respective governors to secured support for the TAS schools especially on Education and Environment.
Key transformations experienced 1. Increased Partnership of TAS schools with other supporting entities suck like:- African Sand Dam Foundation –ASDF. In partnership with Mitamisyi secondary school secondary, build a 150,000lts water tank. Local communities provided role materials; sand, ballast and unskilled labour and the Foundation provided skilled and other materials. Now the tank stands prominently at the school compound and it will be real game changer towards increasing school enrolment.
Wildlife Clubs of Kenya –WCK has committed her organization to be showing conservation film to TAS partnership schools and those neighbouring them quarterly. WCK just like KWS promotes environmental conservation especially small wildlife. They have film and tree planting programs.
County government’s line ministries have shown increased willingness to support the schools whenever requested.
2. Community support increased in some schools (Kasekuni primary School) during recent construction of two classrooms, parents provided all water and half of the sand used. This was a real commitment and the project went on very quickly. There was also the advantage of Project ownership by the participating parents. During the same time, the parents participated in overseeing the construction work of their class; “popular participation”. They were all in it and if anything went wrong, they could blow whistle; possibility.
3. Increase of parent’s participation in school Development matters as levy burden lessened through TAS intervention: some parents feared heavy school levies. Now that TAS has taken up some of their heavy development matters, parent’s part of meeting development cost has gone low and they feel relieved and courageous to come to school parents meetings. This also is having positive impact children enrolment.
4. Local trust able to oversee their projects for quality outcome. Some schools like Jarajara primary school has developed this over time and now they have incorporated the local Chief in their oversight team. Where local school communities are involved either in providing unskilled labour and local contribution materials, the oversight has been strong and better. There is a sense of ownership when they popularly participate.
5. FOREST SCHOOLS; This is a tripartite intervention combining Forest recovery, beauty and protection. Trees are more on conservation/establishment of forest in schools and beauty (Green schools). The trees also acts as wind breakers. On the other hand, the fencing brings security of both children and school properties including the trees planted within the school compound. 6. School population. Most of the schools has shown positive indicators. See table below
Notes; El rar and Boka schools are in the same zone. The area is frequented with famine and the schools rely on relief food from government or development Organization. Last year there was no government relief food and very little came other orgs. Small children are most affected and most of them stopped coming school because they could not stand a long hours without meals especially porridge. This year there is some food and enrolment is coming up again. There is not a scientific fact but local information available. What some of the parents said. Schools Transformation – Pictorial.
WATER
School Principal house; Mitamisyi secondary school
This is the first and only staff house since the school started. Female staff are at risk as they travel at night to the nearest shopping centre for a sort of accommodation. INNOVATING LEARNING/CO-CURRICLUMN Programs
KWS PARTNERSHIP KWS as an organization has been going through a very hard economical time but now, with new Director General and Board of trustee, things seem to be improving though not yet out of the red completely. TWF / TAS funds still remains deployed to Co-ordinator’s salary, subsistence expenses, annual gratuity and part of his transport costs. KWS Project vehicle expenses, office maintenance, communications costs and field support is supposed to be taken care by KWS contribution. They are meeting this obligation minimally due to financial constraint but the will is there. The organization is still keen to keep the partnership going as it is clearly of mutual benefit to conservation efforts. The TAS Coordinator finds working relationship with KWS family during the period close and cordial.
Planned activities
TAS schools to have more engagement with WCK on conservation matters through establishment of trees nurseries and planting of trees seedlings within their respective schools. The organization has agreed to have Kaseluni as their demo school within Mwingi cluster schools. The main challenge is water. The implementation delayed because of lack of enough rains at the Zone.
County government doesn’t deal with primary and Secondary Schools directly. Their portion is Early Childhood program however, occasionally they have instant interventions to other levels based on ECDE relevancy. Some interventions are cross-cutting though. The counties are helping the schools with 10,000lts plastic Tanks. Jarajara in Garissa, and Kaseluni primary and Mitamsyi scecondary schools are earmarked by their respective counties to benefit.
Actualise Forestry School program at Kaseluni , Mitamisyi, Jarajara schools. The program at the initial piloting stage at Kaseluni primary schools. Plan is to have all TAS partnership schools completely fenced off at most for the purposes of children security and forest establishment among other benefits.
Assist each school to establish and maintain conservation/wildlife club. This is to promote conservation matters in the area as well as mitigating environmental degradation issues through simple school programs likes; garbage collection Day, promotion of conservation messages through poems, songs and essays. 2. Keep Nurturing Local Trusts stability within the five phased out schools. Though the schools don’t receive formal financial funding, they still require moral support on keeping and sharing TAS model. 3. Maintain the link between School Local Trusts, Nairobi based trustees/treasurers and UK trust team. 4. Prepare and communicate relevant project reports /updates; quarterly, half yearly and end of the year or as requested. |
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