Maria courts UAE love for whole village and beyond

 On the shores of Lake Malawi in Traditional Authority Fukamalaza in NKhata Bay lies Chiziya Village where villagers are destined for a pleasant narrative, thanks to the establishment of a solar power training institution in the area.

The solar power success story is the brainchild of Canadian environmentalist Gail Swithernbank who, in the course of her work with a Lilongwe-based organisation in 2014, visited this village and shared with the villagers, painful experiences of not having access to electricity.

Swithernbank was so moved that she resolved to help the villagers access solar energy, instead, but she decided to do it in the spirit of the Chinese proverb of ‘not giving them fish to eat, but teaching them how to fish’.

So, she dreamt about establishing an institution where the villagers would learn about solar energy and its benefits in the context of conserving the environment. And her dream came true after a proposal she wrote won the annual United Arab Emirates President Zayed Sustainability Prize in 2014.

A brief on the initiative says the prize facilitates the delivery of sustainable solutions to vulnerable communities, improving access to reliable and affordable energy, safe drinking water, nutritious food and health quality healthcare for millions.

It further says the prize encourages international collaboration and builds a sustainable and prosperous global economy.

In recognition of the prize, Swithernbank named her newly-found institution Zayed Solar Academy, but it is now known as Solar Energy and Ecology Institute after it was affiliated to Technical Entrepreneurial and Vocational Education and Training Authority (Teveta).

The institute currently accommodates 52 students, in addition to 42 who are on internship at various organisations across the country.

This background was provided by the institute’s deputy principal Moses Kaponda on behalf of Swithernbank.

Institute benefits community

Pioneer beneficiaries of Zayed Solar Academy were from Chiziya Village and, among them was Gogo Joyce Mhango.

Incidentally, at the time of the establishment of the institution, Mhango’s daughter, Mirriam, was expectant and the old woman feared for the worst on the day her daughter would deliver at the nearby Maula Health Centre where some women had returned home empty-handed, in tears, after losing their would-have-been newborns due to lack of electricity at the facility.

“After sharing the old woman’s fears, Zayed Solar Academy management decided to extend its solar facility to the health centre to curb the needless loss of lives. That was just in time to afford Mirriam safe delivery,” said Kaponda.

According to Kaponda, after Mirriam delivered a bouncing baby girl—the first to be born safely after the installation of the solar equipment—Gogo Mhango named her Maria Zayed in honour of the United Arab Emirates President who funded the establishment of the academy.

Little did the old woman know that her gesture would attract more affection not just for her family, but the entire village as last November, Gogo Mhango, Maria, Kaponda and another teacher from the institute were guests of the UAE President Mohammd bin Zayed on the sidelines of CoP 28. The institute was invited to make a presentation on its activities and impact on the community.

As things have turned out, that was only the beginning of more good things to come as, in collaboration with the leadership of the Muslim Association of Malawi (MAM), the UAE President has reciprocated to Maria’s visit with a four-member government delegation, which was in the country early this week to appreciate the impact of Solar Energy and Ecology Institute on the community.

In the assessment of MAM publicity secretary Sheikh Dinala Chabulika, there are clear indications that the delegation, which was led by Sheikh Ahmed Alshehhi, has been impressed with what it has seen.

“If a pledge to build a whole Chiziya Solar Village is not a sign of their happiness, I wonder what would be,” said Chabulika.

Chabulika added that, through the visiting delegation, which was hosted by MAM national chairman Sheikh Idrissah Muhammad, the UAE President has also pledged to upgrade Maula Health Centre, where Maria was born 10 years ago, to a fully-fledged rural hospital.

Maria is now in Standard 5 at Chilala Primary School.

Sheikh Zayed will also support the setting up of a modern solar-powered irrigation scheme, construct new hostels for both male and female students at the institute as well as develop what is to be known as Zayed Solar Academy Centre of Excellence.

The promises were made on Tuesday this week when the visiting UAE government delegation, which also included sheikhs Aif Alhamandi, Hamad Alzaabi and Eid Alketbi, had a meeting with the community, which was led by Group Village Head (GVH) Jumbo, a retired primary school teacher who is an advocate of vocation skills and, also, serves in the institute’s board.

“We are really grateful to the donors for the visit and we promise to work with them towards successful implementation of the projects, which will, surely, transform our lives,” said GVH Jumbo.

Commenting on their visit, Sheikh Alshehhi said they would be returning to the UAE on Friday [yesterday] impressed with what they have seen in Nkhata Bay.

“It has really been exciting interacting with the people in that village. We are returning home satisfied with what we have seen. We will report the same to the authorities,” he said.