When self-boarding is banned

Despite the challenges, self-boarding is helping girls, through cutting the long distances to and from school, to complete their secondary education. Government, however, is still firm on banning the initiative arguing it is fuelling early pregnancies and drop-out rates.  Who is fooling who? Our staff writer RACHEL KACHALI explores.

Walking long distances to get to school is one of the challenges most students who attend Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSSs) in Malawi lives with.

Research underlines that long distances affect academic performance of students. In fact, research further specifies that that girls are the worst affected because, before and after school, they are expected to do household chores. As a result, they do not have adequate time to study.

The situation is worse in Kasungu District which has only two conventional secondary schools and 45 CDSSs.

“I used to walk for more than 15 kilometers to school every day. Some of my friends dropped out because it was very tiresome. Self-boarding was the only way out otherwise I could also have dropped out,” says Jacqueline Phiri, a Form Two student at Kafukule CDSS in Kasungu.

However, despite Jacqueline’s solace, recent research has revealed appalling challenges that these girls face in the self-boarding facilities.

For instance, a Kalondolondo study by the Centre for Youth and Children Affaires (Ceyca) in the district shows that girls are subjected to various abuses, including rape, because their boarding houses are not secure.

“The houses are built of sun baked bricks and are usually grass thatched with no lockable doors and windows. There is also very poor sanitation because of shortage of enough restroom facilities and good water supply,” says Ned Mkumba, Ceyca district manager.

Mercy Banda, a Form Four student from Khola CDSS, says she fails to concentrate in class when she thinks of the problems she has to face every day.

“Most of us have to share toilets and bathrooms, which are already in poor condition, with boys. This makes it difficult for us to have proper baths as we are subjected to sexual abuse. At night, we are also afraid of thieves and of being raped by some drunken men who come to disturb our sleep,” she says.

She adds that though they complained to school management and village head of the problem, a solution remains a distant dream.

“Sometimes, together with friends, I miss classes to find temporary work to earn money because the support I get from barely comes in time. And we need to cook and eat every day,” she stresses.

Another student from Mwalawanyenje CDSS, Martha Mwale, adds that some girls are involved in prostitution to earn a living.

“We see some of our friends being picked up at night by some rich men who take them to town to have fun. Others claim to attend overnight prayers at night but are seen wandering about at trading centre.  This makes the community to view us in a disrespectful manner,” she says.

Ezra Kachiwanda, member of Chilanda CDSS school management committee, says, together with the students’ parents, her committee engages in regular discussions on the challenges girls at the boarding face.

“We know our children are meeting these challenges. We try to solve them. But we cannot forbid self boarding because it is their only chance to finish secondary education,” says Kachiwanda.

The communities, hence, are urging government and stakeholders to assist them especially with basic needs such as proper housing and security.

“We are making a progress on our own. Some CDSS now have self boarding facilities which are built by the communities. But we need more support,” says Traditional Authority (T/A) Chulu.

The challenge, however, is that despite community efforts to improve self-boarding initiatives, the quest for fruition will remain a distant dream because government, through the Ministry of Education, made a directive to ban self boarding initiatives and issued a reminder of the ban last year in July.

“Self boarding is out of a question since CDSSs are made to cater for day schooling only,” says the ministry’s spokesperson, Rebecca Phwitiko.

Central East Education Division (Ceed) manager Thomas Mkandawire also defends the ban saying: “self-boarding has contributed to high pregnancy and dropout rates in most CDSS”.

He however agrees that there is a need for more boarding facilities near the CDSS.

“Parents and the communities need to write to the Ministry of Education if they have plans to construct a boarding facility. This is to ensure security of the facilities,” says Mkandawire.

But Kalondolondo programmes manager, Jephter Mwanza, argues that self-boarders are met with the above challenges because there are no regulations as to how self-boarding should be managed.

He urges government to allow teachers to manage the self boarding facilities and decentralise the management of CDSS.

Mwanza, however, takes on government for banning self boarding initiative arguing: ‘the ban is killing the only chance that the poor students have of acquiring secondary education’.

“We find this circular to be discriminatory and an insult to the people of Malawi especially the poor whose only gateway to secondary education is through self- boarding schools because schools are still very far. It should be removed.”

The activist vows that the Kalondolondo programme, which provides a platform for rural people to talk about issues affecting them, will fight for the removal of the directive.

The programme, which started in 2009, is being supported by the Council for nongovernmental Organisation (CONGOMA), Action Aid and Plan Malawi.