This December we have raised a record amount of funds primarily as a result of participating in the BigGive Christmas Challege and two substantial grants from two of our major donors. The British and Foreign School Society has generously given a further grant to supply equipment and materials for the four new schools we have built at Mandandi, Matengu, Silelo and Malima. Included in this grant are funds to send twenty school leavers to study at college. These courses will include hotel management, engineering, computing and mechanics. Saga Charitable Trust have continued their support by once again funding our malaria prevention programme in Mukuni Village. Providing mosquito nets, malaria testing kits and educational workshops play a vital role in saving precious young lives.

Young Mukuni girl at The Butterfly Tree Pre-school

At the beginninng of December we took part in the BigGive Christmas Challenge and would like to thank everyone of our donors who patiently donated online and to the ones, including Cunninghams and Gardiff, who had previously pledged £3000. The competition was steep and funds were depleted within an hour of each day. Amazingly on the third day we reached our target of £6000, with Music Earth Rise making a significant contribution. As a result the two amounts combined total £9000 and have been doubled thanks to the BigGive philanthropy fund and their major donors.

Silelo pupils will attend their new school in 2012

2011 has been an incredible year taking on many more challenges and reaching out to new areas in the Mukuni and Musokotwane Chiefdom. In 2012 we will be building another clinic at Mahalulu in and a new school for Sibbulo community in the Sikute Chiefdom close to the Botswana border, funded by grant aid from the Jersey Overseas Aid Commission. We are helping thousands of orphaned and vulnerable children to have a better chance in life by improving their water, health and education facilities. I would like to thank everyone who has supported us – donors, volunteers, corporate, schools, clubs and individuals who have trusted in our beliefs, which has enabled us to make a difference in one of the poorest areas on the planet.

From all of The Butterfly Tree team both in the UK and Zambia - we wish you a very Happy Christmas and a healthy and peaceful New Year!

Peter Liyungu was the first orphan to be accepted on The Butterfly Tree orphan sponsorship program, some five years ago, when we first started operating in Mukuni Village back in 2006. At the time despite being very intelligent, Peter had lost interest in his education after loosing both parents and having no funds to continue. A sponsor was sought and this transformed his life; as there was no high school at Mukuni Peter wanted to go to boarding school and subsequently attended Zimba High. We are also sponsoring his younger brother Mishek.

Orphan Sponsorship: Peter with brother Mishek – February 2007

I am delighted to say that after four years Peter has completed grade twelve and did exceedingly well in his exams.  In his own words Peter wished to thank his sponsors.

‘It is my pleasure to show my gratitude and say thank you for opening up my life to a dream come true. You are my father and my mother who would have done the same if they were alive. It takes a strong sole to take up the work of someone else.

I must let you know that I have made it through my senior secondary with 16 points which gives me the opportunity to apply for university. It is because of you that I have achieved this, your contribution to my education and my life in all was not in vain and once more thank you for making my dream come true.’

Peter after completing high school – February 2011

To date The Butterfly Tree has sponsored over 400 idividual orphans in addition to providing nutritional feeding programs, classrooms, teachers’ houses and bore holes holes. Our healthcare projects including HIV/AIDS and malaria prevention, boosted by a recent donation from Viking River Cruises, are all for the benefit of these vulnerable children. One of the great things about working in these rural communities is that when we can assist with the orphans’ education, there is always someone who will offer to be a guardian, whether it be a family member, a friend or even a teacher. This is by far more preferable than having to leave their village and be placed in an orphange in town.

Sponsored daily feeding program at Mukuni Village Schools

There are over 700,000 orphans in Zambia alone and they desperately need your support. Education is the only way they can get out of the cycle of poverty to enable them to better their situation. For as little as £110 per annum or just £10 per month a child’s life can be transformed. The money is used to pay for school and exam fees, books, shoes, uniform and school bag. In addition to this the children receive a daily nutritional meal, such as the one at Mukuni, sponsored by Cunninghams. The Butterfly Tree provides educational workshops, using interactive DVD’s donated by TME, teaching the pupils about the dangers of HIV/AIDS, malaria, teenage pregnancy, drugs and alcohol.

If you would like to sponsor an orphan like Peter or Mishek and make another child’s dream come true, please complete the online form or contact jane@thebutterflytree.org.uk

Listen to the orphans singing with the Mukuni Basic Choir on Youtube  

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‘Change for the Better’ is how I would describe this year, our most successful to date. We were awarded a substantial number of grants and received an increase in donations, which has enabled us to reach out to more rural schools and communities of the Mukuni Chiefdom of Zambia.

We have been asked many times, why after four years, are we still working in the same Chiefdom. The answer is simple, by doing this we can ‘make a difference’. Spreading ourselves too thinly on the ground would not have such a great impact. Concentrating on a specific area, providing the essentials in life – safe, clean water, feeding programs, improved health and education facilities leads to sustainability. Once this is in place, we can look further afield and spread our ‘wings’ to a new Chiefdom. Funds permitting, we are hoping that this will happen in the forthcoming year, though our base will remain at Mukuni Village.

All our projects have benefitted from these increased funds and many new ones have been introduced. Two additional bore holes have been put in place. Invaluable feeding programs at five more schools have commenced and each school has been given seeds to grow maize to supplement these programs. Vast amounts of stationery have been donated to six new schools in addition to the existing four we continually support. Bicycles have been purchased for pupils travelling long distances to school and donkeys have been offered to provide transport for disabled children. The classroom block and clinic at Katapazi, our biggest project this year, has been completed.

Despite the government’s efforts to curb the HIV/AIDS pandemic there are still far too many African children being orphaned. As always we continually seek new sponsors and many have offered support after visiting Mukuni Village, just seven kilometers from the Victoria Falls. We have put a substantial amount of funding into our health projects; one of the most rewarding, yet humbling results, is to learn that all the babies on our under-fives feeding program (part of our HIV and AIDS Prevention program) have recently been tested free of HIV. Diseases such as HIV, TB and malaria are prevalent in the region; malaria is the biggest killer of man.

Every forty seconds someone dies from malaria. 75% of deaths occur in children under the age of five in sub-Sahara Africa. The Butterfly Tree provides Malaria prevention; mosquito nets, malaria testing kits and educational workshops. This year to mark World Malaria Day we launched our own charity song, ‘Change for the Better’, to increase global awareness and raise funds for the fight against malaria. The song features three Zambian artists and a young woman from Mukuni, who has received sponsorship through The Butterfly Tree. I cannot stress enough how vital this program is. Our latest results have shown, that in areas of net distribution, no new cases of malaria have been reported, however many more areas need help.

Once again we have been able to fund several successful operations and treatment for children and the elderly. Nine community houses have been built for widows with orphans and a number of sustainable projects have been initiated, amongst them are poultry and goat rearing, vegetable growing and sewing.

With your continued support, 2010 is definitely going to be a ‘Change for the Better’.

Read more… Click for 2010 annual report and account

Jane Kaye-Bailey – Chairman

August is usually a quiet month for charities and fundraising, not so for The Butterfly Tree and Mukuni. I have just returned from a visit to Zambia and the development taking place in several of the schools is amazing. My first stop was to Kamwi, a village just five kilometres from Mukuni Village, but so underdeveloped that it could be fifty. As soon as I pulled up in my 4×4 Sylvia, the deputy head teacher said ‘Come quickly Jane your children are waiting for you’. As we turned the corner of our newly built classroom, the entire school members were waiting, holding banners – then the pupils broke into songs especially written to praise and thank The Butterfly Tree for the bore hole, the 1×2 classroom, the teacher’s house and the feeding program. I was overcome with emotion, tears filled my eyes as I listened to the children singing, knowing that this long awaited project was now complete, which will enable the school to upgrade, shortening the distance many pupils have to walk.

Pupils at Kamwi Basic School                 Classroom for Special Education

Driving some fifty kilometres north west of Mukuni took me to Siamasimbi, a very remote village, which gets cut off during the rainy season when the rivers are too full to cross. The main bridge was destroyed through flooding and sadly has not been repaired by the local authorities. Numerous members of the community were providing unskilled labour to help with the construction of a new classroom and teacher’s house we have funded; here these African children finish their education around fourteen years of age, soon they will have an extra two grades along with the feeding program we are have introduced. Mandandi, half way between Siamasimbi and Mukuni has no such luxury, there is no school! This month the construction of our first entirely new school is taking place, it should be completed for the start of the new term in September, along with the teacher’s house. To improve sanitation all these projects will have pit-latrines added.

Siamasimbi Community Participation           Mandandi eagerly await new school

Machenje Village, another particularly poor village will have a new pre-school. Not leaving out Mukuni a 1×3 classroom block has been added for the over-crowded grades 8& 9 who currently have four pupils sharing a desk. This will also have two offices and storerooms. All these building projects have been made possible thanks to the grant aid from the Jersey Overseas Aid Commission. In addition to this is a classroom for Special Education, kindly donated by The Besom. Children with physical disabilities can go into mainstrean school, now children with mental health problems or impaired vision and hearing can also go to school.  The Butterfly Tree pre-school will also have an additional classroom to cope with the ever-increasing number of attendees, which has now reached over 250. This has kindly been donated in memory of Sandra Challenger, a former employee of Saga, whose charitable trust support our African malaria program.  There are also six community houses being built for widows and orphans.

As always funds are needed for the Mukuni Health Centre for the HIV/AIDS in Zambia and malaria programs we support. A number of children have been sent to hospital for treatment and physiotherapy. We have just added a new water pump and paid for new pipework at the clinic. N’songwe Village will be able to open their community built clinic once the staff house we are funding has been constructed. With so few supplies from the government we have also sent out a shipment of medical supplies, some eighty boxes contain dressings, autoclaves and other equipment, besides clothes for the orphans and books and stationery for the schools.

Girls’ 100 metre sprint Jane presenting ‘Change for The Better’ CD

Mukuni Basic School played hosts for the Kazungula District Sports held over three days at the end of term. The Butterfly Tree provided food for the competitors and transport for pupils from outreach schools. Sport is an essential part of the schools’ curriculum; unfortunately the facilities are very poor with most of the playing fields being dirt tracks. I was shocked to learn that the volley ball that we purchased in Livingstone cost £23 ($34), the only one available locally. All the children ran in bare feet and very few had team shirts for the athletics or ball games. I saw several children collapse at the end of a race, possibly due to lack of food and fluid before they took part. Energy drinks, so commonly used for sporting activities in the west are rarely seen. Despite all the problems the standard was excellent and many Mukuni pupils will go through to represent the Kazungula District in the Southern Province’s competition. I am delighted to say that some of the competitors on on our orphan sponsorship program, proving once again the importance of being able to receive an all round education.

Jane Kaye-Bailey

Listen to the Mukuni children singing on YouTube

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Buy our charity CD ‘Change for the Better ‘

During my visit to Mukuni I was fortunate to have Professor Doug Saunders from Sydney University acccompany for four days. After a brief encounter at Livingstone airport in May 2007 Doug was interested in my work, came to the UK to see me and this February funded a trip to Zambia to assist the charity. He is setting up a program to allow medical students from the University to do their internship at Mukuni Health Centre and Livingstone Hospital, giving the students experience and tropical medicine and in return the students will bring a wealth of knowledge for new treatments.

I took Doug to the morning clinics at Mukuni Health Centre, run by Mr. Mwewa, the clinical officer and Mrs Mukuni the midwife. From a medical experience he was fasinated but equally appalled by the lack of facilities, equipment and medicines. In fifty years in medicine, specialising in gynaecology and obstetrics, he had never seen cases of malaria, leprosy, TB in HIV positve women, severe pre-ecampsia or juvenile cataract.

Chaton Siloka awaiting an operation at Mukuni Health Centre

Doug offered to help with diagnosis and treatment. Two boys who had been suffering from ailments for several years; one had continual urinary infections and the other an enlarged spleen, neither could not be treated in hospital due to lack funds. They had been unable to attend school for much of the year and suffered pain and discomfort. Another boy, Martin Siloka had accidently been hit by a small stone, resulting in loss of sight in one eye as a a cataract had formed. The Butterfly Tree is funding treatment for these three children.

I have set up a program to fund four children a month who need hospital treatment. Although Mukuni Health Centre has some excellent staff it has not got the facilities to operate or treat certain cases. Idrin Ghani who The Butterfly Tree has been funding since last October had her final operation last month and has recovered from the osteomylitis that could have taken her life.

We all complain about our medical care, in the UK it is a free service and we have very good facilites; these rural people cannot evern afford the transport to take them to hospital, where they have to pay for their medication and often the operation as well. Our Gallery shows photos of the Mukuni Health Centre.

Today marks World Water Day. Despite the UN’s International Decade for Action ‘Water for Life 2005–2015′, there are still over a billion people who have not got access to safe, clean water. Water is life, a commodity that we take for granted in the west, but when you have to drink the water from crocodile infested rivers and carry it for several kilometres it is very precious. Millions of children die each year from preventable water-borne diseases, hunger and poverty are a result of water shortage. Women spend many hours of their day fetching water. In a country such as Zambia when the dry season lasts for six months it is crucial to have an adequate source of safe, clean water.

This stagnant water is used for drinking and washing

Earlier this month we were able to provide four new bore holes for the Mukuni Cheifdom. We are working with two other water charites, Just a Drop and W Charitable Foundation who have donated three of the bore holes. WCF are funding London’s University’s SOAS to research water problems in Africa and we are delighted that they have chose The Butterfly Tree for some of their field work studies.

Mukuni, Siamasimbi and Katapazi schools will all benefit. Previously they had to share a well with the community, which depletes the supply and in some cases the water is only available for a few hours a day. Not only is there insufficient water for drinking but also for washing and sanitation. The school will now be able to grow their own vegetables reducing hunger amongst the pupils and making them more sustainable.

The fourth is from a very generous family from the US who I met in Zambia last June. The village of Kafekwa and their neighbours had to rely on river water, highly contaminated, diarrhoa is a common ailment amongst these people. It is a fertile growing area, the income comes from farming and now with the addition of the new well and pump more food can be grown.

New bore hole and pump for Kafekwa Village

We insist that the communities receiving our donated bore holes have their own water committee, must maintain the hand pumps and teach the people basic hygiene.

The Butterfly Tree has partnered with Buy One Give Twice, the UK’s premier charity auction site. If you have any unwanted Christmas presents, having an annual Spring clean or want to donate event tickets or holiday accomodation to raise money for The Butterfly Tree contact us and we will sell them through this secure charity auction site.

When I go out to Zambia and visit Mukuni Village and see how little the people have I feel ashamed when I think about all the material things that I have in my home. I am ‘decluttering’, which is good for the mind and soul and The Butterfly Tree and local charity shops are benefitting. Now you can sell your unwanted items and raise money for The Butterfly Tree. All you have to do is donate the item to the charity, it will then be auctioned and the proceeds with help our projects at Mukuni.

Just a small amount could provide stationary or education for one of the many orphans. As little as £10 can buy 40 tablets of soap. Schools in Zambia receive very little government funding and rely on donations from charities and visitors. We provide edcuational material and sports equipment as well as classrooms, teacher’s houses and toilets. £400 can build a community house for a widow or an elderly person living in appalling conditions or £650 can provide a pit-latrine toilet for a school. £95 can sponsor a childs education for an entire year.

Pit-latrine toilets at Mukuni Village

Lack of hygiene is one of the major problems and infant diarrhoea is common in these remote villages. Having no access to clean, safe water and soap creates many health issues. We are raising funds for the Mukuni Cheifdom to provide more bore holes, improve the sanitation and provide basic hygiene education using workshops and edcuational DVDs.