Memory Mungenisa and Liness Nakanyika received scholarships for
secondary school as part of KnowledgeBeat’s Girls’ Advancement
Program. Ninth grade girls at Ngoma Basic School started the
application process earlier this year. Ngoma teachers, program
facilitators and KnowledgeBeat staff managed the review process and
selected both young women based on their history of academic
achievement, extracurricular involvement and their written application
essays.

I was honored to be a part of this process from beginning to end.
Each of the submitted applications broadened my perspective and
reminded me why we are here. Many of the applicants reflected on
challenges they had endured, some were orphaned, others experienced
abuse, while still others described such extreme poverty that they
were forced to repeat grade levels. Amidst these obstacles, the
applicants articulated unwavering commitment to their education and
their goals.

Below I’ve included personal entries from each of the two scholarship
recipients. I asked them to share a bit about their backgrounds as
well as their initial reactions to being announced as this year’s
winners. Their voices truly express the excitement of this milestone.

In their own words…

Liness Nakanyika
Secondary School Scholarship Recipient

My name is Liness Nakanyika and I am 15 years old. I was born October
28, 1993 at Kaisisi Mission in Lusaka. I am the first born in a
family of five, three brothers and one sister. I live with both of my
parents.

My father’s name is Ackim Kanyika. My father only reached grade
eleven but he did not complete secondary level of education. Luckily,
he was employed and e has been working for ZAWA for several years now.
The salary he earns is not enough to take care of our entire family.
My mother’s name is Ruth Nyimibi. My mother only reached grade seven
in school. She does everything she can to support our family. Both
of my parents did not complete school because they lost their own
parents.

Sometime ago I applied for a KnowledgeBeat scholarship and I have been
selected. I am very grateful that the organization has granted me and
Memory the scholarship. This makes me feel happy and it promotes high
learning spirits and encourages me to take part in all activities at
school.

My dream is to become a doctor so that I can treat people in my
community and promote good health habits. I am also planning to
attend University. This scholarship enables my dream of becoming a
doctor to come true.

I wish the KnowledgeBeat organization all of the best wishes and thank
you very much for your assistance in my education. I am really
grateful. Thank you.

Memory Mungenisa
Secondary School Scholarship Recipient

My name is Memory Mungenisa. I was born May 21st, 1992 in Lusaka.

My father’s name is Forggy Mungenisa and he works at ZAWA as a village
scout. My father’s tribe is Lozi. My mother’s name is Phaides
Shanyimba. She is a housewife and her tribe is Ila.

On behalf of my parent’s, I really appreciate and thank God for what
KnowledgeBeat has done for me by giving me a scholarship. I am so
delighted; I didn’t think I would be a recipient. Continuing
education is a challenge for me, but my prayer has been answered.

Now that I’ve been blessed, I am aiming to complete my education and
complete University. I want to achieve all of my goals, career,
financial and social. I also want to be a pillar for my parents and
the nation at large. Lastly, I would like God to continue blessing
and guiding KnowledgeBeat. May the organization continue the same
spirit. I am delighted. Best Wishes to KnowledgeBeat. Thank you.

On day two of the fieldtrip, the group accomplished the secondary goal
of civic-exposure by visiting Zambia’s capitol, Lusaka. Students had
the opportunity to visit the University, Parliament, and the final
resting place of recently deceased Zambian President, Levy Mwanawasa.

The 13 winning students and 2 teachers now have the responsibility to
share this new information with everyone back in Ngoma. The winners
were excited to return home as Ambassadors, who will educate their
families and friends with a wealth of knowledge.

Students presented a variety of team projects to the three judges from
the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, the Zambian Wildlife
Authority (ZAWA) and the Zambian Electrical Services Company (ZESCO).
As I mentioned, students were separated into three groups based on
their grade level. In the first group (grades 1-4) the winning
project designed an artistic poster detailing the lifecycle of a
butterfly. Winners from group two (grades 5-7) did a soil project in
which they planted seeds using pure water and polluted and water to
show the effects of soil pollution on plant life. The third group
(grades 8-9) did their presentation on the causes of water and soil
pollution and methods for purification.

In his opening speech, Mr. Hazemba, the District Education Board
Secretary who reports directly to the Ministry of Education,
communicated his confidence in KnowledgeBeat. He also spoke directly
to the students, teachers and Ngoma Community, explaining that because
of KnowledgeBeat’s presence in this community, everyone should feel
the responsibility to excel and to embrace new goals. He reiterated
this sentiment in his closing line, “I would say the sky is the
limit,” he said, looking directly at the students. “But today I see a
bright future without any limits.”

I was thrilled to hear Mr. Hazemba challenge the audience this way.
Many aid organizations fail to strike the right balance between
providing resources and stimulating a collaborative response from the
community. One of the primary ways that KnowledgeBeat differentiates
itself is by creating independence through support and community
collaboration as opposed to dependence on aid. Mr. Hazemba recognized
this strength in our model and challenged the audience to utilize
KnowledgeBeat resources but also to redefine their own goals.

All of the girls applied to visit various mentors and the selected
winners spent a day and night with their chosen mentors. An assembly
will take place on Monday, November 10th, during which the winners
will present highlights from their visits and all of the girls will
receive participation certificates.

KnowledgeBeat would like to thank Joe, the Peace Corps and Munda Wanga
for their support with this project!

Over the summer KnowledgeBeat trained Ngoma program facilitators on
how to conduct the Environmental Education Program. Since then, the
facilitators (which include three teachers) have taught weekly
sessions that focus on the health of the environment and how students
can take action to solve environmental problems such as litter,
deforestation, water contamination, etc. Each weekly session included
a hands-on activity. After the sessions concluded, the students
formed groups and started working on a project based on the activity
they found most compelling.

Student projects include: trash pits, alternative energy projects such
as solar dryers, water cleansing techniques, conservation pamphlets,
etc. The Fair will showcase Ngoma and KnowledgeBeat’s successful work
in the area. Stay tuned…

First, a bit of history, August 2007 marked my first visit to Zambia.
Annie and I were in Zambia to coordinate KnowledgeBeat’s registration,
meet with our Zambian team and travel to our “pilot site”, Ngoma Basic
School. Our trip also overlapped with the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) Heads of State Summit in Zambia. It was
the first time that SADC had met in Zambia’s capital, Lusaka, since
it’s inception in 1980. SADC is an alliance that promotes
collaboration, economic integration and technical cooperation
throughout Southern Africa. The Summit decides overall policy
direction and control of functions within the Community. I was
fascinated by the reaction of local Zambians to their being the host
country for the Summit. For weeks the Summit was the front-page news
story, the main topic on the radio and the focus of local dialogue.
Men and women, young and old, wealthy and poor, news of SADC permeated
the city. I don’t remember the policies, but I do remember the
rippling effect that this meeting had on the country. Lusaka was a
city on fire with ideas about collaboration and sustainable
development. It was the first of many experiences through which I was
inspired and humbled by the hope and commitment of the people in this
developing country.

With KnowledgeBeat coming up on one year of phenomenal growth, I find
myself back in Zambia at an exciting time. Both Zambia and the U.S.
recently elected new presidents, President Rupiah Banda and President
Barak Obama. Under this new leadership, I hope that we will find a
renewed commitment to global collaboration and sustainable
development.