In the past five years The Butterfly Tree has concentrated on advancing the water, food, health and education facilities and has made a difference to the lives of  thousands of people in the Mukuni Chiefdom and beyond. Now we are to take this a step further thanks to the help of international volunteers who will be working with the charity to initiate projects which will include peer educating, improvement in education methods and sustainability.

Mutsa Marau from London has spent the past year raising funds to visit Mukuni and introduce a peer education system at Mukuni Basic and High Schools. HIV/AIDS remains the major problem within the Mukuni community leaving almost fifty per cent of the children orphaned. One in six adults is HIV positive and the longevity is merely thirty six years of age. Mutsa is determined to make her HIV and AIDS Prevention project work; educating pupils between the ages of twelve and twenty about the dangers of HIV, holding workshops and teaching during her four month visit to the village.

Volunteers to make change: education improvements at Mukuni

Joining Mutsa will be Petteri Alppi from Finland who is a student at University College, London and a member of their Global Development Initiatives. Although the teaching standards in Zambia are good many pupils fail their exams due to a lack of materials and teaching staff. Petteri has compiled educational data to help improve English and Mathematics skills at the schools. He will also assist the charity by documenting and producing videos of our projects, volunteering and the Zambian cultural way of life.

For the third consecutive year Margaret Bax and Casey Short from Oregon will be returning to Mukuni to continue their work with sustainable projects. A successful chicken farming enterprise has given a number of women an opportunity to have an income-generating activity. Last year Margaret and Casey started a goat-rearing project to assist The Butterfly Tree’s under fives’ feeding program. One of our most successful projects to date this requires a large injection of funds and due to the high cost of formula only a limited number of infants can participate. The project provides formula, to replace breast milk in women who are HIV positive, to prevent the transmission of the HIV virus from mother to child. Since 2007 all infants partaking on this program have been tested free of HIV. The production of goat’s milk will provide a nutritional supplement for this feeding program.

Sustainability – under fives’ feediging program, Mukuni Village

Our aim is to make the Mukuni Chiefdom projects models for other areas of need.

Over the last couple of months The Butterfly Tree has gained new donors through corporate sponsorship. The most recent is Brady Italia, which came about after a group visited Mukuni Village while on a business incentive trip to Victoria Falls. They donated blankets and educational material to the  Mukuni Basic School. As a result of their humbling experience the company and its employees have kindly offered to donate a considerable amount of funds over the next two years in addition to sending shipment of clothing. Another generous offer has come from Canon Australia, again a group visited Mukuni and the team was so touched by the plight of the orphans that they are sending generous monthly shipments of stationery, sports equipment and funds toward one of The Butterfly Tree’s education programs.

Some of the comments made by their team include: ‘It was an amazing experience that changed our outlook on life’ – ‘We were touched by the importance the community placed on educating their youth’ – ‘It was a humbling expericence with a great team of people’.

Corporate Sponsorship: Cunninghams sponsors a feeding program - Mukuni Schools

You don’t have to visit Zambia to get involved. On September 15th The Butterfly Tree has been invited to participate in Cyclothon UK, a fundraising event which is taking place at Brands Hatch. The event, which is organised by Victor Umbugo , former England rugby prop, though his company VU Ltd (Sports & Hospitality Event Organisers) will gain a great deal of publicity. This gives us a further opportunity to raise funds and gain publicity for both ourselves and our sponsors. Hence we are seeking corporate sponsorship and asking for contributions. We would include your company nmae on all advertising material, our website updates and regular posts on Facebook and Twitter. A big thank you to CRB Solutions and Academy Leasing for their genrous sponsorship and getting us off the starting block!

Gardiff sponsors The Butterfly Tree Pre-school – Mukuni Village

We have recently been accepted to participate in the Big Give Christmas Challenge, whereby pledges made before October, though do not have to be paid unitl December can be doubled. This gives us a great opportuntiy to increase funding for the grassroots projects in Zambia. All our work is to benefit orphaned and vulnerable children, we are all volunteers therefore any funds raised through these intiatives will go directly to the cause. A big thank you to CRB Solutions and Academy Leasing for getting us off the starting block!

If you would like to learn more about how you can get involved or to become a corporate sponsor kindly contact jane@thbutterflytree.org.uk