The Handover

  On Friday 1st October the long awaited handover of the first class room blocks for the Edinburgh Girls’ High School (Malawi) finally took place.

It was a colourful and joyful occasion recorded for us by TV Malawi and Una Purdie who is currently in Malawi visiting and filming Scottish funded projects for the Scotland Malawi Partnership. Our guests included the T/A Inkosi Mtwalo, Inkosana Jere, the Village Chiefs and Headmen from the surrounding villages, representatives from the Divisional Education Offices, Mr Kumwenda from the Community Education Department, Mr Harawa from the NGO Board of Malawi, the chief of police from Ekwendeni, the head teachers and staff from Engcongolweni, Chisangano and Enthongeni Primary Schools, Mr Mukumbwe of Fukumele Building Contractors, Mr Mike Lwanda, the architect and design consultant for the project, other invited guests, members of the local community, boys and girls from the three primary schools and the Chesney Trust Board in Malawi – a lot of people! Then there was me, Chesney or Janetee as I’m known locally!

Entertainment was provided by the three primary schools, singing, dancing and dramas.

Chisangano girls rehearsing and then performing with Chesney joining in - as custom requires

Engcongolweni Girls Choir sang a very moving tribute to Chesney Trust thanking the Trust for the donations made to the school of a computer and printer and now for this school that they can look forward to joining in the future.

The boys, not to be left out, performed a drama on the importance of education

While the girls from Engcongolweni danced.

Then it was the turn of the girls’ choir from Enthongeni and the local women.

Finally came the handover of the keys from the contractor, to the consultant and finally to Rev Henry Mvula, Chairman of the Malawi Board. Unfortunately I was so busy running back and forth for the TV Malawi people with the people they wanted to interview that I didn’t get any photos of the day. All the photos were taken by Una’s friend Janet MacDonald who is accompanying her on her visit to Malawi – thank you Janet! Una has promised me some stills so once I have them I will post the actual handover. I do have one of Mike explaining to the people that this is just the first phase of a much bigger project and that it will take time to complete.

Una and Janet thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience, Una from behind the camera and Janet who mingled with the crowd and eventually had to cover up due to the extreme heat and the blazing African sun – she is the one under the pink wrap!

Sorry Janet, but I couldn’t leave you out!