Hospitality firm promotes education through sports in Salima

MALAWI: Hospitality firm, Blue Zebra Ireland Lodge, has reached out to students in the lakeshore district of Salima through various sports tournaments in a move to send the students back to school in the district.

Blue Zebra Lodge Manager, Ken Katuma, said that there is a need to promote education in the lakeshore areas because children are busy fishing and helping fishermen during the school-going time.

“We decided to send children back to school by making school interesting through the introduction of the sports tournaments that will attract more children to go back to school in that they will be off the shore and will be able to attend classes,” said Katuma.

He also said that their lodge will continue with various interventions only to keep and bring more children back to school as a way of combating the high level of illiteracy along with the lakeshore areas.

The District Education Sports Officer (DESO) for the district Joseph Kaunda hailed the sponsor for the initiative that will attract and bring more children back to school.

He said, “Sports will not only help students to go back and keep them in schools but also help develop skills which are important to those students aspiring to become sportsmen.”

Kaunda added that their office will render all the much-needed support to make sure that sports in these primary schools are promoted to keep children in schools.

Lines Dickson Headteacher at Kachelenje Primary School agreed with Kaunda by thanking Blue Zebra for the initiative that will help bring kids back to school.

“I would love that the chiefs should take the leading role because they have got a voice of influence in the society and then the aim of Blue Zebra will be fulfilled and many children will go back to school,” said Dickson.

Group Village Headman Maganga on behalf of Traditional Authority(T/A) Maganga pledged that, as a local leader, he will do all it takes to keep the children off the lakeshore through the use of community policing members who will be there to make sure that no child is around the lake during school period.

He also said that the development implemented by Blue Zebra is a very good initiative as the sports and games will attract more children to school which is a better move when it comes to the improvement of education in the district.

The Blue Zebra Ireland Lodge has pumped K2,500,000 into the sports initiative.