Meet the brilliant Deborah. She and her extended family of nine, whose primary caretaker is her grandmother, have been living in unfinished (under construction) houses as stay-in guards around Matawale in Zomba. In fact, Deborah was born to this way of life. The homes usually have no windows, doors, and plumbing, among other things, and such is Deborah’s house. She starts her day by fetching water in a bucket to prepare for the day. Her grandmother sells vegetables for a living. At most, she makes MK25,000 ($30) per month.
With this earning, the income is not enough to provide the basic needs for the family and to support her and her siblings in school. As a result, her grandmother struggled to provide school fees, stationery, and other mandatory things like a school uniform for Deborah. Being bright girl she is, Deborah scored 4th in her zone during the PSLCE mock exams and was later selected to Likangala Secondary School. And just as her grandmother was worried about the higher fees, Yvonne, the founder of Fund a Girl Initiative, happened to be in Zomba seeing her own family for Christmas when she learned of Deborah’s story from her mother. What a Christmas it was for both as yet again, we managed to find a sponsor for Deborah who committed to supporting her with tuition, stationery and uniforms throughout her secondary school. With this support, she will be able to pursue her studies without difficulties.
Deborah is now about to seat for her Junior Certificate of Education and we have no doubt she will shine again. In future, she aspires to be a Lecturer in Nursing, and she believes that this sponsorship will take her some steps closer to achieving those dreams so that she can eventually take care of her family and support her siblings in school.