Lilongwe DC hails Marist Brothers for advancing quality, access to education for all

Malawi: Dr Lawford Palani, District Commissioner for Lilongwe, has praised the Marist Brothers of the Roman Catholic Church for initiating various interventions to improve the quality of and access to education for all children in Malawi, writes Watipaso Mzungu.

Palani made the remarks on Friday at Likuni Boys Secondary School, where he was kicking off a one-day workshop for secondary school teachers who benefit from the projects the Marist Brothers in Malawi run.

The religious brothers are implementing the Girls Empowerment and New Horizons Projects with financial support from the Marist Foundation for International Solidarity (FMSI), with the main goal of addressing barriers that prevent underprivileged and non-boarding students, particularly girls, from accessing education in Malawi.

According to Palani, one of the major barriers to education for many Malawian children is poverty. He stated that the Marist Brothers' interventions in Malawi will be critical in addressing gaps in the education sector.

"These interventions are very important not only to the beneficiary districts but also to the nation because the Marist Brothers are doing everything they can to provide quality education to every child, regardless of their financial background. As you are aware, education opens up many doors of opportunity in life," said the District Commissioner.

Brother Francis Jumbe, National Provincial Councilor for the Marist Brothers in Malawi, stated that the goal of the Friday workshop was to review the progress teachers had made in developing materials that would be uploaded to digital libraries.

Meanwhile, in Malawi, the Marist Brothers purchased and distributed tablets and internet routers to seven secondary schools that benefit from their interventions.

Likuni Boys Secondary School in Lilongwe, Champagnat Community Day Secondary School (CDSS) and Marist Secondary School in Dedza, St. Charles Lwanga Secondary School in Balaka, Zomba Catholic and Mayaka CDSSs in Zomba, and Msalura and Mafco CDSSs in Salima are among the schools.