Latest FOCHTA news
Below are some recent activities at FOCHTA, in spite of our technical college not opening due to the pandemic. Currently there are 5382 positive cases of COVID-19 in Malawi, a country which has a population of 19.13 million. There is an increase of 356 cases from the previous week, with 2716 recovered and 168 deaths. However, in the rural District of Thyolo, there has been no new case in the past week. In total, there are 58 confirmed cases in the district with 51 recovered, 6 active cases and 1 death. According to Dr. Emmanuel Kanjunjunju, our Honorary Board Member who is the Director Of Blantyre City Council in charge of public health, the worrying part is that there are insufficient community actions to adopt prevention measures, and that the country is not able to adequately trace positive cases.
There is talk that schools and universities may reopen in September but this has not been confirmed. FOCHTA staff however are continuing to work in our office. Our director Lucius has been busy upgrading the facilities of the college so as to be in compliance with TEVETA, a quasi-government organization monitoring technical and vocational colleges. Our understanding is that TEVETA will pay the fees of a number of additional students in time. Therefore new desks and chairs have been procured, first-aid boxes and fire extinguishers bought. An auditor has also been appointed to begin auditing now.
Face shields and masks have been acquired, also an infrared thermometer. More text books have been purchased for the electrical department. In addition, twelve books for the same department have been donated by Anglia Bookshop in Malawi. As for the IT Dept., a number of e-books have been donated by Professor Don Ferrin of Singapore MBA University. Furthermore, the professor has also donated the ongoing salary for an assistant accountant. Mervis Masamba, the successful person, will start work in on September 1.
In Australia, Robyn Lyall and another friend have donated the cost of purchasing 42 solar lamps to give to our student beneficiaries. This will enable students to study at night in their homes as there is almost no electricity connected to the district. In addition, calculators, even buckets and soap have been distributed. A FOCHTA staff member, Caroline Malidima, has started training 12 students in basic computer skills. She has also been working with the IT teacher to improve the database of students and network of grassroots members.