Category: Uncategorized

Building Technology and Design is one of three practical subjects being taught at Pakati, alongside Agriculture, and Fashion & Fabrics.

Here in the lesson in the photos, Form 4 students (GCSE year), students are learning to raise and construct walls of buildings, so that when they finish school they can be attached to professionals within the community to build houses.

The main aim of this practical work is to teach the students how to use tools such as spirit levels, trowels and shovels. They are gaining skills which may set them on a useful career path.

Date: Friday 7th June 2019

Venue: Mabika Secondary School

Competing schools: Dombodzvuku, Mabika, Munamba & Pakati Secondary schools

Competition: Zonal – Under 20’s girls football, Under 20’s volleyball boys and girls teams

Good luck to Pakati!

Today I received another £100… the football shirts are proving a real hit! I am grateful to my fellow Iron fan, Simon, who is doing all the selling for me. Simon is a dedicated collector & trader in many different shirts.

As well as Simon, I have other Iron fans who have been searching through their wardrobes & drawers to find items they would be happy to donate for me to sell.

Above are some shirts donated by Brian, the man who also helped by doing some of the sponsored walk with us in April. Below are shirts donated by Glenys, another avid collector of match-worn shirts.

Also donated were these two below, by another Iron fan, Jill.

It looks like we will probably raise something like another £700-800, maybe more hopefully…

This is all going towards the project, towards providing IT equipment & getting it shipped to Pakati. I think we may look at extending the fundraising beyond this year, but I will discuss this all with Mr Mugove Chifaka, Head of the Secondary school.

While I was moving from being a student teacher into a potential VSO volunteer, Mr Samakomva, then Headmaster of Pakati Secondary school, was approaching VSO in Harare to ask for a new Maths teacher for the school.

There was an arrangement between VSO and the Zimbabwean Government, specifically the Ministry of Education. Schools could request a teacher from the UK if they could meet a basic standard of accommodation.

VSO staff would visit the school more than once before agreeing to send a volunteer there, and a serving volunteer would also visit to do a report. The outline of VSO’s report combined the findings of both staff & volunteers, and it was sent to the prospective volunteer back in the UK.

The report I recieved about Pakati made it interesting to me….VSO staff’s part of it was fairly factual – ‘the school is in a remote rural area, east of Harare, with access by dirt road. It has around 300 pupils & 10 staff’. The serving volunteers part, who taught at a school North of Murewa, was more intruiging….

‘Pakati has a remote but pleasant feel about it. There is a small township a few km away (Musami), around an hours walk depending on the height of the intervening river (and the mood of the crocodiles…)’

My departure (along with 11 other new volunteers) turned out to be an anti-climax…we were booked onto a flight with Air Ethiopia, due to fly that Friday night, 6th January 1989. Having done the goodbyes, we waited…waited…and finally….

…our flight was cancelled! We were taken back through customs & booked into an hotel close by. We were fed & watered, then 24 hours later, we took off for Addis Ababa. On arrival, it became clear that there was no connecting flight to Harare until the Tuesday, so the Airline had to put us up in another hotel, in Addis, until the Tuesday. Our adventure had begun in an unexpected way…2 days & nights in the Ethiopian capital proved a real eye-openee to us all.

We did arrive in Harare on the Tuesday afternoon, to be met by VSO staff. We were taken to a training centre where our in-country training had been reduced. By the Friday evening several of us were ready for a night out, & ended up at Jobs Nightspot to watch the Four Brothers play live. Very enjoyable!

Saturday 14th January meant we were being taken to, and dropped off at, our new schools & homes. 3 of us went together, along with the volunteer who had done the report about Pakati. Firstly, Darren was dropped at Shamva, then Lucy was dropped near Mutoko. As the afternoon wore on, we finally arrived at Pakati. The other volunteer, Mick, helped me settle in by staying overnight.

Sunday 15th. I met the Deputy Head, My Nyamauya, and several staff for the first time. We went around the school and to the nearest store, 40 minutes walk away, where I met several members of the local community.

Monday 16th January 1989, my first official day as a teacher, is now a blur…I remember very little of it if I am honest. But it was, as they say, the first day of the rest of my life. An experince I will never forget, and I will always be grateful to Pakati school and the community for the opportunity to become one of them.

That, dear readers, is how I came to teach at Pakati 30 years ago.

Here is the story behind how I came to be a teacher in a rural school in Zimbabwe…

It began in Sheffield really, in 1984. I was out of work & a bit lost to be honest. A friend of mine told me she thought I would make a good teacher, suggesting I applied for a teacher training course which would start in September that year. She also thought the best way to find out if I would enjoy it would be to volunteer in a local school.

I worked 2 days a week at a Middle school (ages 8-12), for 5 months, supporting a class teacher but also trying some lessons under his guidance. I ended up being invited to join them on a couple of school trips. When it came to the interviews for the course I had some good experiences to draw on, and knew I would enjoy teaching.

I trained at Bradford College, a 4-year B. Ed. (Hons) 1984 to 1988. As a student, I went out with friends, drinking in local bars where there were live bands playing. I watched one particular band often, who had a Zimbabwean bass player. I got to know him and his family well. His sister once asked what I was doing, and when I told her, she said “oh, you should come to Zimbabwe, we need teachers”. The idea was planted in my head…

As I completed the course I started applying for teaching jobs locally, but without success. Another friend thought I hadn’t really tried that hard…

One weekend as I walked through Bradford city centre I saw a large double-decker bus parked up, with the letters VSO ( Voluntary Service Overseas) on the side. I had heard of them, so was intrigued enough to go on board and find out more. I picked up some leafets & an application form. I filled it in & sent it off…this was August 1988. Within a few days I got invited for an interview….this turned out to be a whole day, early in September, with different activites including a 1 – to – 1 interview, brief lesson planning & delivery examples, and group discussions.

10 days later lying in my bed in my flat, I heard the post arrive. A thud hit the floor. I knew before looking what it was – I had been accepted by VSO. Their letter had lots of information in it, with plans for my pre-departure training. Also by this time I had a temporary job which lasted until the Christmas period of 1988.

Throughout this time VSO were trying to source a job for me. It started with Sierra Leone, but they turned me down as I was a newly qualified teacher. Then it was the Solomon Islands, but that fell through as there was a coup, so no new volunteers would go there for the time being. It got to early December, I had done all the training….I had nowhere to go. Then out of the blue…

….Zimbabwe came to my rescue! I just wanted to go SOMEwhere..I said YES straight away, and things moved very quickly. By early January I was getting everything ready, for a departure from London Heathrow Airport on friday night, 6th January 1989. My parents and some of my friends came to see me off, quite an emotional time I can say….

Part 2 to follow….

Here is a collection of some earlier posts about my thoughts on the responses from people from the Pakati area, former students & staff among them.

1- It is heart-warming…..

…to me to start getting messages from the community in and around the Pakati area. I am getting a tremendous response from ex-Pakati students, some of whom are from the time I worked there. I will put togetherIt is heart-warming….. some of the things being said, and post them on here another day.

One particular person who has contacted me has been the former Deputy Head when I first joined the staff at Pakati, My Martin Nyamauya. It was Martin who I met on my first day, and he helped me settle in quickly, showing me around the school and the area, introducing me to people I needed to know. I have always remembered the kindness he showed me then and on many other occasions.

A former student, though not of my time, who is still active in supporting the school has also been messaging me, giving support & encouragement; Doc Bothwell Riside. Been saying some good things about the project.

To those who knew me either as their Maths teacher, Headmaster, or even both, and also any former colleagues, please do keep messaging me, and please pass the links on to others who may know the school – all links can be found by clicking on the ‘Important Links’ at the head of tge Home page. A former student, though not of my time, who is still active in supporting the school has also been messaging me, giving support & encouragement; Doc Bothwell Riside. He has been saying some good things about the project.

It is truly heartwarming to read what has been said about the school, staff who have worked there over the years, and about myself. I really appreciate your kind words, and I feel as humbled now as I did when I was there 30 years ago. Thank you.

2 – I had no idea….

…that when I started this project I would find myself back in contact with some of my former students. Nor did I realise just how much impact I had on the school at the time. Here below are a few quotes and/or comments I have had in recent days.

“You taught me Mathematics in Form 2 & 3 in 1989 and 1990…you inspired me, sir, I am following in your footsteps. I finished a Diploma in Science Education at Bindura University, specialising in Mathematics. Once I get my results I will be a fully qualified Maths teacher. You played a very important part in my life”

“Rarely do you find someone still making efforts not only to connect but to be pro-development about an area. We are the outcomes and outputs of a legacy you left since educational development is not a one-off event.”

Others remeber a borehole & water suply project I set up, or a library using one of the classroom store rooms where we had a local handyman put some shelves up for us.

It is very rewarding to be remembered for the work done so long ago, it seems I left a legacy without realising it! I will include other comments too in the future. Thank you to those who have been so encouraging towards my endeavours thus far.

3 – I had no idea part 2…

….about any ‘legacy’ I may have left, but here are some more comments made to me recently about my project…I cannot really put into words how much it means to me that I have the support of the schools & community members, students & colleagues past and present.

“I am so happy for what you are doing, as was a learner at both Pakati Primary and Secondary” (Maceline Gandanhamo)

“It’s wonderful you are going to do great things for the school” (Sue Chadenga)

“You left indelible marks…my aim is to name an item like a (classroom) block in your name” “I am humbled by what you did and you are continuing to do. God bless you.” (Doc Bothwell Riside)

“Thanks very much for your effort” (Isdore Chatereza)

Here is a second chance to read about my favourite question, and some other stories too.

Every now and then I think back to my time at Pakati & remember something that happened, someone I met, somewhere I went, something I heard, smelled, tasted, or tried for the first time. Here are a few of the small things which struck me for some reason or another.

One day not long after arriving, I was accompanying Mr Samakomva somewhere, and so early in the morning we walked from the school to the bus stop known as ‘pachuru’ (anthill), about 20-25 minutes walk. As we walked past a number of family homes along well-trodden paths, I heard a distant voice & Mr Samakomva replying. The voice came closer, another reply, and evetually the two met & passed without stopping. Their conversation continued until out of range, and maybe took several minutes as the clear morning air carries sounds well. It turns out they were just saying ‘hello’! The first time I really understood the importance of greeting in Shona culture…

There are balancing rocks all over Zimbabwe, and plenty in the area around the Pakati schools. They are sculpted by wind and rain over thousands of years.

Before I came to Zimbabwe I had a taste of the local music scene back in Bradford. There was an annual Festival, lots of different bands from a ross the world. I watched The Real Sounds of Africa who impressed me with a great full sound, lots of rythym, and they clearly enjoyed playing their music. I was in Harare with some felow VSO volunteers & saw a poster advertising for the same band, at the Kamfinsa Hotel (now closed?). They were amazing, and after the 2 hour show in Bradford, I then learned that it’s different in Zim…they played all night! I became a regular wherever they played – Jobs Nitespot, Mushandira Pamwe, Club Hideout or where I most saw them, 7 Miles Hotel. I became friends with several of the band. All except one were from Zaire (now DRC) but had married Zimbabweans & settled. I still listen to them via YouTube.

My first taste of sadza was soon after we arrived in Zimbabwe, at a training centre in the north of Harare, and I instantly took to it. It was at Pakati I had Kapenta (similar to anchovies) for the first time, cooked by my colleagues & housemates (George Mutatapasi & Regis Chriape – where are they now?). I had locally grown greens, tomatoes, onions, potatoes all fresh, eggs & chickens also locally produced. A butcher from Musami occasionally cycled over selling beef from a cool box. I ate as well there as I have anywhere in the world.

In Musami I tried Chibuku (a local maize-based beer) for the first time, declined roast mice (too burned, I wasn’t drunk enough!), discovered the Mombeyarara bar had the coldest beer & was the only one selling Zambezi…I played darts in Musami, and occasionally walked there & back from school.

At Chigwada I met Thomas Gombera, owner of the Hamamaoko store, and his wife. Also several local farmers, teachers from other schools, and my own colleagues met there regularly as it was the nearest store in 1989. I had a birthday party there at least once with two other serving VSO volunteers who were working in Tanzania at the time. The hill where some old rock paintings can be found overlooks Chigwada, and I took several visitors there. Many good memories

To get to Chigwada was a 40 minute walk. 30 minutes to get to the dirt road, then walk along it, round a curve in the road, before walking towards the store past the grinding mill. At the apex to the curve there was a homestead and one day as I walked past, I was asked the best question anyone has ever asked me. I heard a voice of a small child, a young girl of maybe 5 or 6 years old, and as she ran from her home to the gate to greet me, she said at the top of her voice:

‘Why are you?’

To this day I am unable to answer. But I did respond after a short stunned silence:

‘I am fine and how are you?’

She ran off clearly delighted, laughing all the way back to her home.

Hi! My name is Matthew Marimo. I was born in 1976, at St Paul’s Hospital in Musami, in the District of Murewa.

I did my Primary education at Chanetsa Primary School from 1983 to 1989, not far from Pakati school.

I attended Pakati Secondary school from 1990 to 1993, but did not actually complete Form 4 at that time. I returned to the school in 1996 and wrote my ‘O’ Levels in 1997. I have not done any further studies since then.

My favourite subjects were English, Science Geography & commerce. The teachers I can remember the most were Miss Beattie, Miss Chadbon, Mr Veremu and Mr Sidhuna.

In 2002 I joined the Zimbabwe Prison Service ( ZPS), and I am still there now. I live in Goromonzi District, and this is where I met my wife, with whom I have 4 children now.

We have a new Saturdsy Star lined up for tomorrow – a gentlemam called Matthew Marimo. Looking forward to telling you about the latest former Pakati student profile!

Today I added another £120 to the http://gofundme.com/friends-of-pakati from recent sales of football shirts.

This means we have now passed the total of £1000 !!! Fantastic news !!! Many thanks to all contributors – would be great to get to the £2000 mark if we can…

Many thanks also to Simon who is continuing to sell more shirts online via ebay for us. He has provided more contacts for me to try & acquire more sports shirts to sell.