Chief emerges best adult literacy student
Village head Chaima under Traditional Authority (T/A) Maseya in Malawi’s lower Shire district of Chikhwawa has led by example by emerging the best student during the 2012 adult literacy classes organised by Stephanos Foundation in the district.
With an average pass rate of 70 percent in reading and writing, the chief, whose real name is Laisoni Besiteni, outclassed 209 students that attended classes in all the district’s 10 adult education centres.
However, the village head was one of the very few men that defied stereotyping as only 12 men attended the classes.
“I am happy to have become the best student and it feels good to be an educated man. This has given me courage to continue with my studies and will start my primary education at the end of the current school holiday,” said the 58-year-old last Friday.
For his feat, the chief received a hoe and a plastic basin from Stephanos Foundation programmes manager Chimwemwe Salie Hara besides taking home a Bible and a certificate as all the other graduates.
According to Anthony Mchawa, who represented Chikhwawa district commissioner as guest of honour, Chikhwawa is one of the country’s districts with a high number of illiterate people. The illiteracy level stands at 52 percent in the district.
“Most of the illiterate people are men. They shy away from adult literacy classes because they fear being looked down upon as failures by women on their roles as heads of families,” he said.
This was the fifth year that the Christian organisation has been conducting the adult literacy programme in Chikhwawa. The inaugural classes in 2008 had 600 students but the number decreased to 430 in 2009, 405 in 2010 and 315 in 2011.
