ALMA’s Children Project
[Source: Margaret Davies, (ALMA Niassa Chaplain), with thanks to Richard Ennals, Patrick Coleman and Helen Brown (Alma rep for Edward Betham School), December 2009]
There is a description of the school by the late head teacher, and more pictures of the school elsewhere on this site.
In September 2006 my husband and I made a trip to Mozambique. After visiting some Anglican churches in Maputo we travelled to Nacala where we called on the church of Todos os Santos (All Saints) which is linked with All Saints, Hampton. Among those who welcomed us warmly at the church were Father Damiao Jaquissone and his wife, Rebecca, Paul and Benegrade Chintinguiza and Samuel Kumbe. Paul and Samuel are church elders and Paul had been directly supervising the building of a primary school close to the church which has been a key ALMA’s Children project.
This was to be the first Anglican State School in Mozambique since independence in 1975. It had four classrooms, an office, water supply and toilets. The standard of building appeared to be good and the church hoped at that stage to hand the school over to the Diocese in mid January 2007 with lessons starting on 20 January. We took a gift of stationery and pens and pencils from All Saints, Hampton, to the school (and also some squishy balls, a gift from ALMA to the nursery school for deprived children which Rebecca Jaquissone had started).
Our visit to Nacala ended with a lunch generously provided by Benegrade Chintinguiza as we and our hosts sat and talked about education and the Todos os Santos community’s hopes for the school and its further enlargement. We discussed the teaching of RE, ideas about uniform, the appointment of staff and the introduction of foreign languages at primary school. As in Maputo we were tremendously impressed with what the local Anglican church and community were trying to do. Father Damiao has since moved to Lichinga as Archdeacon and the current priest at Nacala is Father Mateus Ntiko.
(from left) Rebecca & Father Damiao Jaquissone (with their younger son), Samuel Kumbe, Benegrade & Paul Chintinguiza outside the school building
In February 2007 the school was duly opened by Bishop Mark, the Bishop of Niassa. Rev. Patrick Coleman, the Bishop’s Commissary, who was also present, has given a graphic account of the opening ceremony with the cutting of the ribbon and every room, including the lavatories, being blessed with holy water.
MANNA photos provided by Patrick Coleman
Later that year the school and the church were visited by Richard and Bobbie Ennals from All Saints, Hampton, by which stage the school had 440 pupils, including 47 aids orphans. Richard has maintained an active interest in the school’s progress ever since and, after his visit, was able to arrange to send a package of educational materials to the school through Don McBurney, a member of the Educational Committee of the UK National Commission of UNESCO.
The school’s development has continued and by April/May 2009, when Patrick Coleman reported on it again, it had 875 pupils who attended in three shifts and there was also a church-run night school teaching adult literacy.
Furthermore, in Goodwyn Mnyawa the school has a headmaster who takes every opportunity to explore contacts with the outside world, and it is now linked with schools from 25 other countries in the World Council for Total Quality and Excellence in Education. In that connection in 2009 Goodwyn attended the 12th international convention on Student Quality Circles in Lucknow and was the first headteacher to attend the convention from mainland southern Africa.
Since 2009 All Saints School has an ALMA Partner too. It is twinned with the Edward Betham School, a Church of England Primary School in Greenford, West London, a school with a history that goes back to 1780 - although its current establishment dates from 1993 when it had about 450 children on the school roll. Edward Betham School participated in the 2008 Diocese of London Lent Appeal ‘Education for All’ and, through the focus on primary education in Angola and Mozambique, became very interested in the prospect of having a twinned school.
At Christmas 2009 the school sent gifts to Nacala and is looking forward to their relationship deepening and growing. We can confidently hope that the link will be a blessing to both schools.
Margaret Davies, December 2009