In Zambia’s Mongu District, where poverty is a daily reality and opportunities are scarce, a quiet revolution is taking place. What began as a simple gathering in an empty warehouse has blossomed into a network of schools and kindergartens, offering hundreds of children not only an education but also dignity, nourishment, and hope for a brighter future.
Planting Seeds of Change in Zambia
Zambia, a landlocked country in southern Africa, is home to over 20 million people. Despite its natural resources and pleasant climate, more than half the population lives in poverty. For many children, especially those affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, education is a distant dream.
In 2019, a group of volunteers eager to transform Africa, including Malaysian volunteer Ching-Shun Hsiao (蕭清順) and South African volunteers Michael Pan (潘明水) among others, began laying the groundwork for community care in Zambia. Even as the COVID-19 pandemic brought international aid to a halt, local volunteers—guided remotely—persevered, ensuring that support for the most vulnerable continued.
In January 2024, three Zambian volunteers—Astridah Mulambwa, Erica Ngulube, and Olivia Deka—traveled to Taiwan for volunteer training and certification. There, they witnessed firsthand the transformative power of early childhood education and returned home determined to bring these lessons to their own communities.
A Classroom in a Warehouse: The Birth of Mongu Kindergarten
Upon returning to Mongu, Astridah rallied fellow volunteers to convert a donated warehouse into a makeshift community center and classroom. The space, once used for gatherings and meetings, became the starting point for Tzu Chi's Kindergarten in Mongu.
At first, only a few dozen children attended. But word spread quickly, and soon the number swelled to 140. Three volunteer teachers and two caregivers now guide children through lessons in English, math, social studies, and science, using the national curriculum and homemade teaching materials.
For many of these children, home is a mud or thatched hut, and hunger is a constant companion. Their parents are deeply grateful for the opportunity to send their children to school, where they receive not only lessons but also daily meals.
Nourishing Bodies and Minds
Recognizing that learning is impossible on an empty stomach, volunteers invited better-off parents to contribute food, which is then prepared into nutritious vegetarian meals for all students. This initiative has improved attendance and concentration, ensuring that children can focus on their studies rather than their hunger.
Uniforms, sewn on the school’s only sewing machine, are funded by donations collected in bamboo coin banks at local food stations. In 2024, these efforts raised enough to support 32 villages, helping children feel a sense of pride and belonging.
Learning Beyond the Classroom
Education at the kindergarten in Mongu goes beyond academics. Children learn character and values through stories and aphorisms, participate in morning and evening prayers, and take part in outdoor activities designed to build teamwork and resilience.
LEFT: Volunteers cultivated a vegetable garden near the kindergarten, teaching children about the connection between effort and reward. The harvest supplements school meals. RIGHT: Neatly dressed, Mongu Kindergarten students line up for morning assembly and prayers, learning to care for themselves and others. | Photos: Mongu Tzu Chi volunteer | Zambia
In November, fifty children visited the Mongu Museum to learn about their heritage. Teachers also encourage reading, finding English books from South Africa to expand the children’s horizons.
Spreading Hope: New Schools Take Root
The success of the kindergarten in Mongu has inspired other communities. In Simonolui, villagers offered a partially abandoned brick house to start a second kindergarten. Within months, enrollment grew from 50 to 200, prompting a move to a larger space.
LEFT: In September 2024, Simonolui villagers provided a semi-abandoned brick house for a new kindergarten, welcoming 50 students. RIGHT: Each morning, teachers greet children at the gate, and students bow respectfully before entering. | Photos: Mongu Tzu Chi volunteer | Zambia | 2024/09
In Lukunzi, 200 kilometers away, the local chief donated a mud house for a village school. Here, 210 children—ranging from preschoolers to primary students—crowd into the small space, eager to learn. Despite the cramped conditions, the joy of learning is palpable.
Kafubu and Namalazi villages soon followed, each establishing their own small schools with the help of volunteers and community members. Villagers contribute labor and materials, making bricks and gathering sand and stones, while Tzu Chi supports with cement and roofing.
LEFT: In Kafubu, 204 children attend a new school, and the entire village celebrates the gift of education. RIGHT: In Namalazi, 165 children now have a place to learn, and parents rejoice at the opportunity for their children’s education. | Photo: Mongu Tzu Chi volunteer | Zambia
Cherishing Every Resource, Lighting Every Child’s Path
In each village, the spirit of self-reliance and mutual support is strong. Uniforms are sewn, meals are shared, and every book, pencil, and blackboard is treasured. Volunteers and villagers alike are determined that poverty and illiteracy will not be passed down to the next generation.
Today, more than 700 children in Mongu and surrounding villages have access to education and hope. The journey is far from over, but with every lesson learned and every meal shared, the future grows a little brighter.
Written by Ya-Chi Yuan (袁亞棋) and Hsiu-Ling Wu (吳秀玲)
