Dedication

To the Memory of Joesph Lawrence Chow

The library is dedicated to the memory of Joseph Lawrence Chow, a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer who passed away in a tragic accident near the village on September 22, 2009. He was a volunteer teacher at Ndanda Secondary School and an avid reader. Through the Joseph Lawrence Chow Memorial Fund, the family and friends of Joseph have donated their time, effort, and funds to help furnish and equip the library. May the library be yet another way that Joseph's memory lives on.

Project Summary

In partnership with a local NGO, MACOBICA (Maguu Community Based Information Centre Association), Tetea has helped to build, furnish, and operate a library in rural Southwest Tanzania. If you would like to help support this ongoing project, please donate. The project has already raised enough money to finish the library building, furnish it, train a librarian, and stock it with an initial supply of books. We are still in the process of raising additional funds to install solar power to facilitate evening studies. The area lacks an electrical grid and students often have no place to study after the sun sets around 6pm.

The library has been open to the public since November 2010. As of August 2011, there had been over 6,700 visits to the library. The main patrons are primary and secondary school students (80% of all visits) looking for a place to study as well as materials from which to study. Local villagers also come to the library to read the daily newspapers, which are brought in to town from the district capital.

Many books have been purchased in-country, most of which are related to the primary and secondary school syllabi. Thanks to assistance provided by the Joseph Lawrence Chow Memorial Fund and partner schools, hundreds of additional, appropriate texts have been donated to the library. While the library has about 1,300 books, it is always looking to expand its collection, especially in the areas of agricultural, health, and other materials that will be beneficial to the general public.

Background Information

The Hagati Valley is located in the Matengo mountains in the southwest corner of Tanzania. Due to the fertility of the soil the location is one of the more densely populated rural areas in the country, with a population of approximately 50,000 people (based on the 2002 Population and Housing Census). To educate the local youth there are 35 primary schools and 11 secondary schools scattered throughout the valley, with more under construction. Unfortunately educational resources, like text books, are scarce in most government schools and many private schools. To make matters worse, they are often not made available to students even when they are present.

In order to improve access to educational materials in the area TETEA is partnering with locals to construct a library where students will be able to read the nationally prepared textbooks, other materials related to their courses, and literature in both Swahili and English to help improve the language skills that students need to succeed. Ideally the building will be outfitted with a photo-voltaic system for lighting, allowing nearby students to read and study at night. In addition to the focus on serving students, the library will contain Swahili material to promote literacy in general, agricultural information that may be of interest to local farmers, and regular periodicals to improve the local populace's knowledge on current events.

Located in Maguu, the economical, political, and spiritual center located roughly in the middle of the valley, the proposed location for the library is in an excellent position to serve a wide portion of this mostly rural community. The building can be reached by foot in several minutes from three secondary schools and one primary school. Students from at least one other nearby secondary school also live in the village. Also, on Sundays the library could potentially service people from all over the valley, as many make the trip to attend mass at the Catholic mission, purchase goods at the market, or both.

Simon describes the Hagati Valley and the need for a library.

Simon Mahai explains the plan for the library (a mix of Swahili and English).