. Kapotwe

By JONATHAN MUKUKA –

NAKONDE District, a border town in Muchinga Province is regarded as the fastest growing in the region with an annual growth rate of 11.9 per cent and population of 119,708.
Nakonde is home to one of the most celebrated teachers in Muchinga who, against all odds, has proved that determination, perseverance and commitment is all what it takes to be successful in life.
Chama Kapotwe, a 40-year-old Zambian teacher, serving at Chapanya School in the rural part of Nakonde is a direct beneficiary of the cooperation between schools, businesses and society to together build a platform for community elderly education and the Government’s education re-entry policy.
Kapotwe, now a holder of a Diploma in Primary Teaching, got married in 1992 to a peasant farmer in Ntindi Village which is right at the border with Tanzania in East Africa.
Kapotwe dropped out of primary school in grade five after falling pregnant and was forced to get into an early marriage.
The young couple then lived well and together, they had three children, a set of twins who are both girls and a male child.
However, after five years in marriage, things turned sour for Kapotwe.
Realising that problems involving the couple had deteriorated beyond redemption, parents to both parties decided that the marriage be dissolved as it was evident that the two no longer loved each other and therefore could not continue living together as husband and wife.
As directed and with full blessings from parents of both sides, Kapotwe was divorced and started selling tomatoes at the market in order to provide for her family.
As a single mother, things were no longer the same for Kapotwe  who now had to work hard to provide for the family daily needs as well as ensuring that children remained in school by paying for school fees and buying uniforms as well as other requirements.
Kapotwe was also responsible for paying house rentals.
In 1997, Zambian Government through the Ministry of Education announced the re-entry Policy to ensure that girls who fell pregnant while in school could go back and complete their education.
Through this education re-entry policy, the Government encourages girls and women who drop from school at an early age, to get back into school, Kapotwe decided to start school in grade five at Ntindi Primary School.
She did everything that every child was expected to do in class and outside the classroom.
Kapotwe’s performance in class was superb from the first day.
“At first I was feeling uncomfortable learning with children. However, this motivated me to work hard and performed well in all the subjects,“ Kapotwe said.
She continued working hard and obtained good grades in all the subjects. It encouraged her so much and during the final grade seven examinations, she got the highest marks in the entire district.
She proceeded to pursue her secondary school education at Nakonde School where she successfully completed her secondary education in 2006.
Hilia Chalibonela,  one of the teachers at Nakonde Secondary who taught Kapotwe described her as a humble and determined person who was always committed and ready to learn new things every day.
Ms Chalibonela said Kapotwe’s hard work and discipline earned her to become Head Girl of Nakonde Secondary School despite being a mother of three.
In 2007, Kapotwe proceeded to enroll at Kasama Teachers College of Education in Northern Province of Zambia.
She was sponsored by the local business community and other well-wishers in society and successfully graduated three years later as a qualified Primary school teacher.
Kapotwe completed her teacher’s training college in 2009 and was recruited as a teacher in 2010.
She was posted to Nakonde District, her home town.
Kapotwe said she would remain indebted to the Government, the business community and society, for having accorded her a second chance to sit behind a desk, something that helped her pursue dream of becoming a teacher.
She said she had always dreamed of becoming a teacher and that it was all thanks to the Government’s positive policy that her dream had today been actualised.
Kapotwe said she was happy that after being recruited, the Ministry of Education posted her to her home town to teach as the move helped her to be a model to school-going girls in the area.
Kapotwe said she does not feel ashamed to share her experiences with her pupils especially the girl-child and encourages them to work hard and become what they want to be in future.
Zambia National Union of Teachers (ZNUT) Muchinga Provincial Organising Secretary Nondo Kasanda describes Kapotwe as a pioneer of mother education in Nakonde.
Mr Kasanda said Kapotwe has succeeded in her life because of determination and perseverance.
He further said Kapotwe was one of the disciplined pupils in class and now as a teacher, she was one of the committed teachers ready to deliver good results at the end of every year.
Mr Kasanda, who also taught Kapotwe from Grade 10 to 12 at Nakonde Secondary school, said Kapotwe has inspired many mothers in the province to go back to school.
Kasanda said the education authorities partnering with the business community and members of the public were now using Kapotwe as a role model in the education advancement of the girl child.
She was currently heading a school in the remote part of Nakonde District in Muchinga Province.
Currently, she has sponsored herself to pursue a Bachelor of Arts Degree programme in Education with the University of Africa on Distance Learning (DL).
From the time Government introduced the re-entry policy, the business community, civil society, the church and other stakeholders have joined hands to see to it that young mothers are able to complete their education by going back to school.
Years back before 1991, once a girl dropped out of school after falling pregnant, it would mark the end of her enrolment in any education system.
This led to early marriages especially in rural areas like Nakonde District in Muchinga Province and usually through difficult circumstances such as forced marriages as the case was for Kapotwe.
The Ministry of Education in Zambia has also introduced affirmative action in favour of girls at Grade seven and Grade nine  levels.
Girls require slightly lower scores than boys to proceed to the next level to ensure retention of girls in the education system for longer periods.
According to the Ministry of Education, Government is on course towards construction of 100 high schools around the country in order to increase access to secondary school education
There are currently well over 50 high schools under construction with more under evaluation.
Scaling up school infrastructure development projects across the country aims to decongest and encourage more pupils to access education especially girls.
Nakonde District Commissioner Field Simwinga says Government initiative of constructing more schools are a direct response to persistent gender gaps in education.
Mr Simwinga says the long term impact of this ambitious programme of the Government is evident in having few women in leadership positions.
Global trends indicate that teenage pregnancies are a major social problem and according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNPF) the problem has assumed endemic proportions among teenagers, especially in the poorer nations, like Zambia.
“Nakonde is on top in the province with regards to cases of girls being withdrawn from school and forced into early marriages” said Mr Simwinga.
He says Government departments and other Non-Governmental Organisations have gone flat out to educate the masses on the need to promote the education of the girl child.
Mr Simwinga said teacher Kapotwe is being used as a role model in the district in the sensitisation campaign that the district has embarked on.
He said the problem of girls falling pregnant while in school is very high and this is why in a bid to mitigate the problem, the Zambian government put in place a policy to facilitate re-entry of girls who fall pregnant back into the school system after they had babies.
This policy that has been in operation for over 14 years has benefited many young girls like Kapotwe of Nakonde who is a direct beneficiary of the cooperation between schools, businesses and society to together build a platform for community elderly education.
The Zambian Government has reiterated its commitment to continue with the re-entry policy because of the impact it has had on the women and girls in the past.
Ministry of Education Spokesperson Hillary Chipango said Government has no intentions to abolish the re-entry policy and further called for support from all stakeholders in ensuring that the programme succeeds.
ZANIS/ENDS/