THE AUSTRALIAN SECONDARY SCHOOL AT SHAIBU/NOGWE

The Australian AIDS Fund Incorporated is funding the construction of its second Australian Secondary School in rural Malawi.....at Shaibu/Nogwe where its Australian Primary School was opened in June 2008.

The construction is being undertaken on a piece of land big enough to include sportsfield activities and also the space for future expansion.

By way of geographical background, Nogwe is the central hub...the group Village... of a very large area that encompasses many smaller sub villages...like the spokes in a bicycle wheel.

Distant though it is from the major cities and centres, the Shaibu/Nogwe villages haven't been spared the ravages of the HIV/AIDS pandemic....and this new school initiative has special regard to that.

To date, there are almost 200 (197) HIV positive children living in the area, as well as 314 AIDS orphans.

When the Australian Secondary School is completed it has already been agreed that its enrolment of 400 shall include:-

• 10% of HIV Positive children and
• 20% of AIDS Orphans.

This would mean that 30 % out of the enrolment of 400, one hundred and twenty students, will have their school fees waived.

The school fees from the 280 students will be used for:-

• Paying teachers salaries
• Providing salaries for other staff members
• Buying school materials
• Maintenance works
• Charity services to orphans,the elderly,the sick ,the abused,etc
• Communication costs
• Etc,etc

News Update - June 2009 The foundations are in..and now the work begins on building two onsite houses in the grounds of The Australian Secondary School at Nogwe. One will be for the School Principal, and the second for one of his staff teachers.

News Update - November 2008 The buildings that make up The Australian Secondary School at Nogwe, sit alongside the peaks of the Mulanje mountain range..almost as if they were perched on the roof of the world. Work on the classrooms, offices, and what'll be a line of toilets...all in full swing....in a race against the Spring rains. The completion and the opening is scheduled for early January 2009.

News Update - Sept/Oct 2008 Framed against the background of the mountain range, the four-classroom block of The Australian Secondary School rises from its site on the rural Nogwe village area. The builders have their sights set on having the project finished in time for it to open its doors to its first teenage students on January 2009. Nearby, caught in the afternoon sun, the Staff Office rises alongside the 4 classroom-block.

In order to combat the constantly rising costs of labour and materials, it was decided to train unemployed local youth to make the many desks that will be needed for the Secondary School....thus containing and reducing costs while also teaching some carpentry skills! They've done a good job!

A very large piece of land has been chosen to site The Australian Secondary School at Nogwe, ensuring space for its future expansion...as well as sports fields.

Committee members of Tithandize Orphan Care gathered on site having decided on the location after extensive consultation with the local people.

The site is fringed by the traditional thatched houses of the villagers.

A rising mountain of bricks...more than 80,000..has already been stacked up on the site for the building works