|
Back to Index
Tonga.online
newsletter # 50
Kunzwana
Trust
March 13, 2006
Visit the Tonga.Online
website at www.mulonga.net
Ziliikuchitika,
it’s happening in Sinazongwe across the river!"
Austria Zimbabwe Friendship
Association, Kunzwana Trust, Horizont3000 and the Tonga.Online team are
very proud to announce a major step forward in the extension of Tonga.online
project: Ziliikuchitika, it’s happening in Sinazongwe across the
river - Mulonga. The establishment of Sinazongwe ITC at Sinazongwe Basic
School, Zambia has been completed. Five years after the start of the project
in Binga, the network has now definitely reached the Zambian side of the
Valley. What an occasion to celebrate together with the # 50 edition of
Tonga.Online newsletter!
Previously, Tonga.Online
trainer Theo Sianyuka made a wide reach with project awareness campaigning
in Sinazongwe and Mweemba communities of the valley, Mamba Secondary School
and other schools, with the support of the Honorable Chief Sinazongwe
and Mr and Mrs Miyanda. The computer technician attached to Binga High
School by Horizont3000, Uwe Allgauer, has joined hands with Gary Brooking
from Arachnid Design in Bulawayo and traveled to Zambia, successfully
installing 15 computers at Sinazongwe Basic School.
Gary wrote: "The
installation went well. Connectivity and communications are a big issue
there. But apart from that there is a lot of support and enthusiasm for
the Project. Theo has been very well received and she is a great ambassador
for the project. The Ubuntu and Open Office I am sure will be a great
success and a model for many other schools to come".
The photos documenting
the installation of the computers are already on www.mulonga.net.
Thanks to Uwe and Tenashi for the pictures.
The IT Centre is expected
to be operational by 3rd March 2006. The official opening of
Sinazongwe ITC with lots of Ngoma Buntibe and Budima dance and music at
another Mulonga.Net Festival is scheduled for the beginning of September.
"I feel there
is a call from down under the lake waters for the BaTonga people of the
valley on both sides to remain united, sharing the same development and
catching up with the world" said Binga coordinator David Mungombe.
More News from
Tonga.Online team:
Binga continues to have heavy rains almost daily. The rains sometimes
come with harsh thunder and lightning that affects the whole district
with power cuts and bad telephone networks. Most roads around the district
have been destroyed, and after the season, will be very costly to maintain
as confirmed by the servicing departments who failed to do the required
road works last year due to lack of funding and fuel. These factors also
affect Tonga.Online project’s operations as expected by the district.
Nevertheless we are determined to progress and are facing the challenges
together with all stakeholders involved.
Binga district welcomes
the deployment of an Austrian specialist, Uwe Allgauer, who will assist
in the maintenance of IT services and focus on technical IT training for
Binga people.
Facilitated by Horizont3000,
he will also advise the District Council’s Science and Technology committee,
where he was co-opted as a member We hope that all partners and stakeholders
will offer him their most valuable support as we continue to invite donors
and sponsors to make the Binga project more successful and beneficial
to the community, with more active ITCs and respective capacity development
programmes.
Binga ITC:
The centre has managed to network all 15 computers, which are now
connected to the internet and all users are enjoying the service although
sometimes disturbed by the unstable network. The Centre has been producing
students’ ID cards as a fundraising project. Basic computer training has
started well after the computers were serviced to a normal working condition,
with sixteen (16) people, five men and eleven women who include members
of different Churches and spouses of main stakeholders completing the
course. Horizont3000 has visited the district along with Uwe Allgauer,
and finalized his attachment to Binga High School. Tonga.Online facilitated
the introduction of the technician to local authorities, schools and the
District Council’s Science and Technology Committee, into which Uwe was
co-opted based on his IT expertise.
Siachilaba ITC:
The plans for an outreach training with Alpha Smart keyboards in feeder
schools with the assistance of computer literate / trained teachers from
Siachilaba’s feeder schools is being communicated to the concerned schools.
Although access to the ITC is given to the whole school, the trainer is
giving more attention to the 45 Grade Sevens, 20 boys and 25 girls, along
with four members of the community (1 man, 3 women) who took the basic
computer course this month. The centre is also open on certain times on
weekends to cater for the public that is busy during the weekdays. The
headmaster has expressed concern about financial constraints in replacing
printing cartridge but is negotiating with some suppliers.
Syanzyundu ITC:
The headmaster is still following up on the center’s printer at the MINESC
regional office in Bulawayo. The IT trainer is having computer lessons
with all the school’s thirteen classes, a total of 600 students, and assisted
four community members, two males and two females who had enrolled for
the basic computer course. Feeder schools were asked to organize and expose
their pupils, especially Grade Sevens to the ITC for computer literacy.
All teachers are being encouraged to be computer literate so to be able
to teach their classes using the Alpha Smarts that are available at the
centre. The trainer has also set up a meeting with Chief Saba to help
train the Chief’s committee, especially the secretary, in using the Alpha
Smart for their village court minutes and other documents.
Twiimbilane Studio:
The studio has received another amplifier from AZFA and a guitar is still
to come. Apart from the ongoing music recording and development, we have
assessed and found a good number of artists with meaningful music on HIV
/AIDS that we thought could be used for awareness and behavior change
across the community. The studio department has therefore visited the
District Aids Action Coordinator’s office (DAAC) for support to carry
out awareness activities in the form of a live performance at the Binga
Business Centre. We feel the event would make the songs useful as well
as exposing and giving confidence to the artists. We are working with
some artists in putting together some available instruments but the most
difficult to find is the drum set and speakers. We also require refreshments/food
and transport for the artists who are coming from around the district.
It is our hope that some concerned members of the globe will be able to
reach us with the necessary support to start these activities in the next
two months.
Simonga Cultural
Group:
The group has continued to consult Chief Siachilaba about the year’s first
beer ceremony, Matenta that they would like to celebrate with all
Tonga traditional music. The group met on 23 February where they tasked
each other to different roles. Women are reproducing or maintaining the
beaded costumes for the group and some for marketing. Basket-makers are
looking for an opportunity to market their goods abroad and earn more
Zimbabwe dollars with the exchange bank rates.
Tonga Music broadcast
on Austrian Radio One:
There was another chance to listen to Ngoma Buntibe, Kantimbwe and
other styles of amazing Tonga music from Zimbabwe and Zambia on
Austrian Radio Broadcast Channel 1 / ORF Ö1 Radiokolleg from
Monday 13th until Thursday 16th February daily in the morning. This
programme was targeting especially schools and other educational
and academic institutions and was referring to the Symposium "Zambezi
River Music" which was held at Donau University Krems in July last
year. ORF journalist Andreas Wolf who made the series in collaboration
with Cornelia Pesendorfer and Peter Kuthan conducted also interviews
with Austrian composers and musicians Klaus Hollinetz, Werner Puntigam,
Peter Androsch, Otto Lechner & Windhund. AZFA is happy having
Tonga music and cultural heritage promoted again in Austria - it
was a great daily treat. With special permission of Andreas Wolf
and ORF we will get the soundfiles of this special feature series
onto www.mulonga.net
website / resources very soon - check it out!
Visit the Kunzwana
Trust fact sheet
Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.
TOP
|
