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| Noria Banda, 17 of Kachele Transit Home in Petauke. |
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| Chief Nyamphande with Kachele Transit Home manager Diana Lungu |
LIVING in a society where children are treated like property rather than human beings that are entitled to rights has had adverse effects on the literacy of children in Petauke in Eastern Province.
The children do this at the instructions of their parents. “I have no choice but to send them to the market to sale things like groundnuts, maize and other foodstuffs depending on the season.
“School is expensive and sometimes not beneficial to them and the family as a whole. Like the situation is here in Petauke, a child might not even complete secondary education because of high fees,” says Maria Tembo, of Chief Sandwe of Petauke.
“Excited as I was,” Ms Tembo said. “The fact that people were talking about education being helpful, I decided to enroll my child into school. My daughter too was excited but after grade seven, she was selected to Grade 8 and I failed to sponsor her and she could not continue. When I look back, I regret the time she wasted and the money I wasted during her primary education. My daughter is now married,” Mrs Tembo said.
Literacy is the cornerstone of development politically, socially and economically. During the colonial days, Zambians had had centuries of deprivation of the right to education and many thought that everything would change with the attainment of independency 50 years ago.
It was hoped that children all over the country would flock to schools and get the most need education in their lives. But they are not.
“I would have loved to go to school but my parents are saying that it is a waste of time because after Grade 7, they might not find money for my secondary education and I would have just wasted 7 years in school,” says Noria Banda, 17 of Kachele Transit Home in Petauke.
For Noria, she found herself in the transit home after her parents arranged for her to get married.
“I would have been in Grade 10 by now but my parents arranged that I get married. I refused the offer and they chased me from home that is how I found myself at the home,” Noria said.
Eastern Province has the lowest literacy rate in the country.
Statistics from the Ministry of Education show that around 50 per cent of the population is literate, but the figure is much lower in the rural areas and among women and girls.
It takes little imagination to see how difficult it is for an illiterate population to escape the trap of poverty. Try to imagine being unable to read. Think of all the signs around you as you walk down the street that would be meaningless to you. Think of how few jobs would be available to you. Think of how difficult it would be trying to learn anything new.
Experts say education is a vital component in human development, but many children in Petauke may not have the chance to get an education.
“It is not that simple here in Petauke to for extension officers like us to tell the parents to take their children to school. We have tried our best but it is not simple,” District Social Welfare officer Yoram Kaziya said.
“It is becoming readily accepted that children in Petauke and most parts of Eastern Province do not go to school, instead, they help fend for the family through various income-generation activities. They sale little merchandise and other take care of cattle. More than two-thirds of children do not go to school,” Mr Kaziya said.
Mr Kaziya said changing the mentality is the main challenge, “disrupting the self-perpetuating culture of not taking children to school by inculcating new habits is not simple. Some parents have openly told us that ‘these are my children and I decide what’s best for them’,” Mr Kaziya said.
“We have massive potholes in the development of our children, especially that children themselves would rather respect their parents’ wishes,” Mr Kaziya said.
As much as the country lacks school infrastructure in most parts in the rural areas, parents also lack a culture of talking about the reasons why an educated populace is important to individual, family and national development.
“Education can be such an important tool. It can create a sense of context. It helps you understand what’s happening in your life and grants you a greater range of tools to build resilience and a greater sense of opportunity,” Chief Nyamphande of Petauke said.
Chief Nyamphande says education enables people to feel affirmed in their sense of purpose, belonging and identity.
“Because we see that school is not bring immediate benefits, parents would rather tell their children to go and cultivate in farms. This trend has to end and end now, because education is a vital component in any development,” the chief said.
Chief Nyamphande said some of the reasons why parents do not encourage their children to go to school is due to financial and sometimes it is the high levels of illiteracy among the parents.
“The challenge is to create a culture of educated populace by educating parents about the importance of taking their children to school,” the chief said.
But the problems are too deep-rooted to be treated with just good school infrastructure. A radically different approach is needed.
It is a question of changing the mindset of children and parents here in Petauke. Otherwise, society will keep amassing deficits that no one can afford to pay.
Strengthening literacy from the early years is the long-term strategy to reduce illiteracy. Education is not only a fundamental human right but the very foundation of acquiring knowledge.
Investing in children through education now means the creation of a favourable environment for a literate generation in the future.
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