The Sunday Mail
Desire Ncube, recently in Rusape —
The Anglican Diocese of Manicaland of the Church of the Province of Central Africa (CPCA) has embarked on an ambitious project to construct girls’ boarding schools in every district.
The Manicaland districts in question are Nyanga, Mutasa, Makoni, Chimanimani, Chipinge and Wedza. At the diocese’s 35th anniversary celebrations, Manicaland Diocese leader Right Reverend Bishop Erik Ruwona said plans were underway to build several schools in Manicaland.
He said the first project would be St Cathrine’s College, whose plan was mooted a decade ago. The church already has St David’s Bonda in Mutasa. Bishop Ruwona said the project was stalled over the years due to architectural, engineering and legal glitches.
“We are planning to open this school in January next year; we will look for a satellite place first and thereafter our students will star using this place,” he said. “It was after we saw the impact of St David’s Bonda that we thought of increasing girls schools in our diocese.
“We are concerned about the gender disparities that we face of the 49 schools that we have here not more than three heads are women.
‘‘It is not because women are incompetent but because they have for long not accessed equal opportunities with their male counterparts.
“Again it’s like politics in Zimbabwe which is dominated by men; women are coming in through certain quotas and as a diocese we are committed to change that.”
He said St David’s Bonda Girls’ School had produced students who had taken up engineering, mechanic and other male-dominated courses at university level and in industry and business.
“We are also considering vocationalising our academic institutions (high schools) so that they offer courses like nursing, teaching and agriculture.
‘‘We have realised that it is not enough to train people who have to look for employment elsewhere.”
Diocesan education secretary Rev Canon Phineas Fundira said the St Catherine’s Girls College bill of quantity was estimated at US$4 million. Rev Fundira said the planned colleges would include multi-storey hostels with capacity to accommodate 1 000 pupils, two-storey libraries, counselling rooms and specialist laboratories for practical subjects.
The schools will have science complexes; eight ordinary classrooms; heads, matrons, guests and chaplains houses; swimming pools; two lecture theatres; dining halls-cum-kitchens; administration blocks; workers’ residences; chapels-cum-school halls; games courts; sports fields; amphitheatres; and teachers’ houses.
