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Title: Chamazi Library Project
Location:
Categories: Education
Status:
In Progress
Timeline:
January 1 00 to January 1 00
Description:
Located 25 km south of Dar es Salaam is the rural community of Chamazi. This community has voiced its desire and need to gain access to a community library. We believe that through offering access to books and providing a quiet area to read, many who do not already appreciate the value of education will come to the realization that it is in-fact a very crucial part in fighting poverty, and for those who do hold this appreciation for education will be pleased to have access to such a resource. This is based on the testimony of the benefits and effects that the Kwekitui Library that was constructed in 2004 has had in the Lushoto District, according to the chairman of Tanga Youth Development Association, David Chanyeghea;
“Many people now understand the importance of a library and they are coming to Kwekitui to read books. Even students from other schools and youth who are not in school are coming to use the Kwekitui library”
The village that this library has now been built in is an eco-village that UVIKIUTA established in the 1990s. UVIKIUTA’s aim in this community is to build low-income housing and make it available to youth, to promote the use of eco-friendly energy sources such as bio-gas and solar energy, and to promote the conservation of the natural vegetation in and around the village. This eco-village is located in a rural area and serves the surrounding villages through developing the community into one that can offer various social services. This library would therefore be used by those in and around Chamazi and would be used as a tool to promote education to all generations.
Other areas of work that UVIKIUTA is involved with include the Bega kwa Bega (side by side) Work Camp which involves organized community volunteer work, communal living, and educational seminars. Accompanying the desire to construct a community library in Chamazi was to organize an educational young adult student trip that ended up visiting the community during the library construction. We also invited a group of Tanzanian young adults to participate in all the work camp components. Local community members participated as volunteers in the construction of the library as well.
Our desires are to see this community transformed in positive ways through providing access to a community library, as well as setting an example to the surrounding areas as to how a library can improve the livelihood of a community.
Background:
The literacy rate seems to currently stand at approximately 74% according to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa website . Although providing Primary Education to the current youth population is a top priority in Tanzania, there is still 26% of the Tanzanian population that seems not to be benefiting. Reasons include the fact that many older generations never had access to a formal education, and although primary education is being freely offered by government schools to the youth, there are still costs such as mandatory uniforms, textbooks, and other school related items that families who live off sometimes less than $2.00 a day cannot afford.
The construction of libraries can promote a higher literacy rate to both mentioned demographics. This community library would be offered as a free service to all members of the community and can potentially be used to host adult education seminars in. Some useful seminars to offer these adults include up-to-date research on farming techniques, health-related information, and English language training. We also realize that some children and youth may never have access to a formal primary education, but through access to books and potential seminars geared towards this younger generation, opportunities to gain useful skills is increased.
Objectives:
Although the four weeks of volunteer construction work is over, the library still needs financial support. There has been a huge change in the prices of materials in Tanzania, and these costs continue to only grow bigger as time is passing. We have doors and wiring installed, the roof as well. The walls are plastered, but we still need windows. After the windows are installed we can begin to work on details inside the library, like;
- Book Shelves
- Tables/Chairs/Couch/Desk
- Computers
- Lighting
- Etc...
Milestones:
Approximately 20 volunteers took part in a four week work camp to help with the construction of the library. This team of volunteers was formed by the Canadian and Tanzanian young adults who were participants on the educational young adult student trip.
UVIKIUTA is pursuing various book donors, fundraising to send a member of the community to be trained in Arusha as a librarian and is making plans to open the library in January 2009. The Canadian student team brought a small collection of books from Canada which are now located in a temporary library, which is an office given by UVIKIUTA only meters away from the library that was built summer 2008.
The volunteers experienced many things during their six weeks in Tanzania. The first week of their stay was an orientation in Northern Tanzania. The four weeks that followed were spent volunteering at the library construction site and building roads in the eco village that UVIKIUTA is currently building. The last week in Tanzania was spent debriefing the team in a quiet beach area just across from Dar es Salaam.
Orientation: The team of Canadians and Tanzanians came together in Dar es Salaam and then proceeded to travel north to Tanga and then to Mbelei where they visited the Kwekitui Library. During the stay in Mbelei, Tanga Youth Development Association were our hosts and planned our two days of activities at the Kwekitui Primary School and helping with a church construction project in Mbelei. This was a time for students to acquire a clear vision of what we were to accomplish in Chamazi. By visiting the Kwekitui Library students got to see first-hand the positive effects of providing access to a library in a rural community.
Budget:
$30,000 Canadian
Needs:
Donors:
Cash : You can mail in donation to the ACTS office in Comox (http://acts.ca for mailing address)
OR you can contact me for more info
In-kind: we are interested in compiling a small collection of culturally-sensitive books that the team will bring to TZ summer 2008
Contact Name: Sarah Switzer, Project Officer
Contact Email Address: maktaba4afrika@yahoo.ca OR sarah.switzer@twu.ca
Contact Phone Number: 604-513-2121 Ext 3414
Tags:
book, library, education, uvikiuta, chamazi, tanzania, africa, acts, sarahswitzer, kathyyeo, davidmoore, twu, volunteer
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