Our plan
The area is one of the poorest in South Africa: Of the 500k population only 14.9% are employed and 80% live on less than $2/day. Our idea is to build a social enterprise model that can have a profound effect on education and poverty over the next 20 years and to be a role model for the rest of Africa. THE PLAN A team of career educators undertook a structured schools benchmarking audit to assess basic needs essential to effective learning: 1) School resources in nutrition, sanitation, equipped classrooms , staff facilities and extramural facilities 2) Teacher and learner commitment to learning in an orderly, disciplined environment where intellectual activity is valued; underpinned by a sense of responsibility, trust and honesty. A team of experts is collaborating on-line to develop a model that integrates best practice in • Endemic architecture and construction, • nutrition and sanitation • learning through story telling and dance • women's enterprise for facilities management and experiential tourism We have learned that our work will succeed and be sustainable if • success is based on improved learning • solutions are owned by the community • projects are used as tools for active learning within the curriculum • start small and build excellence before expanding Stakeholder workshops involving 150 community members educators and learners were help to empower local communities to understand that they hold the key to improving schools and that we are there to help.
What we did
Projects start with securing buy-in and local ownership from stakeholders including community leaders, school management, parents, teachers, learners and government. The Umzinyathi Community Education Centre as local project managers who offer the opportunity for scale of the endemic enterprise model to the other 350 schools in the area over time The team building the Model: Nutrition: Gary Campbell established fuel.org.za that has accumulated unprecedented knowledge and understanding of SA School feeding scheme's. Sanitation: Trevor Mulaudzi Askoka Fellow "I questioned children about their truancy .. the results shocked me so much that I devoted my life to cleaning school toilets" Endemic Design: Jutta Bern-Mumbi studied development and environmental economics and political science founded ecocentric specialist in green building design. Play-Pumps International for innovative fresh water solutions driven by children at play. Together this coalition will lead the charge on our initiative.
Our results
We have been operating for less than 2 years and from a standing start a school has been electrified, a library built and classroom construction commenced in a third school all using local builders. Approximately US$1mn has been raised including a blue chip equity deal established that is expected to yield a further US$2.5mn in 10 years time. Improved facilities have increased the capacity to deliver education and school leadership empowered through access to skill and resource. Detailed baseline score-sheets are in place for schools to measure improvements. Pass rates will be accorded equal weight in measuring success. Medium term plans are to achieve the following results: The capacity of a Grandmother to care for a family of 7 on $112 a day is awesome. Developing local women's co-operatives with enterprise potential to provide perma-culture based nutrition, experiential tourism, facilities (including sanitation) management and after school story telling and dance will empower and magnifying the capacity of these women within schools. This will capture the strength of traditional cultural learning techniques and give access to opportunity and resource essential to addressing poverty. Access fresh water solutions is crucial to permaculture, sanitation and nutrition all of which will have a major impact on improved discipline and learning. High speed internet access will increase effectiveness of under-qualified teachers through distance e-learning solutions.
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