The Sunday Mail
. . . 100 percent Grade 7 pass rate
Amai Mugabe Junior School recently held it’s 2016 speech and prize giving day. It was a colourful ceremony held at the school’s premises in Mazowe and many parents and invited guests graced the occasion.
The Sunday Mail Bridge publishes the address by the guest of honor, Mrs Fidelie Gandiya, at the event . . .
Fidelie Gandiya Operations Director – Higherlife Foundation —
The Director of Ceremonies, Ms. Munaiwa, Your Excellence the First Lady, Amai Dr Grace Mugabe, Members of the First family here present, The Administrator, Mr. G.D. Mpofu, The District Schools Inspector for Mazowe, Mr. Chari, The School Headmaster Mr. P. Chitambo, The Headmistress of Amai Mugabe High School, Mrs. A. Muridzo, Senior Government officials here present, Heads of Departments of Grace Mugabe Foundation, Heads of Schools here present, School Partners in the Corporate World, Teachers, Parents, Invited Guests, Students, Ladies and Gentlemen, Comrades and Friends;
I feel greatly humbled to be invited as guest speaker at this great occasion and to be addressing this esteemed gathering.
Allow me therefore to express my most profound gratitude and appreciation to the responsible authority of the school, Her Excellence the First Lady Amai Dr Grace Mugabe for coming up with this state of the art educational facility for use by children in Mazowe.
This facility obviously shall not benefit the local students only, but all the children from all the four corners of Zimbabwe and beyond. Having visited many schools in our country, I can confirm that Amai Mugabe Junior has set very high standards which are unmatched.
I am also informed that the school had a 100 percent Grade 7 pass rate this year, and is still the best in the District and the Province. Let me thank the staff of Amai Mugabe Junior for maintaining such highest standards and therefore encourage them to aim even higher and continue to lead.
I am also grateful that the responsible authority has allowed orphaned, vulnerable and disadvantaged children to be enrolled in the school. As Higherlife Foundation, we are humbled by this kind gesture.
By enrolling these orphans, it is a clear message that the Responsible Authority recognizes the fact that even the disadvantaged and vulnerable child has the right to education.
As Higherlife Foundation we have 20 Capernaum scholars enrolled here and we believe that the school will nurture them into productive and responsible citizens of this great nation of ours. Allow me at this moment to tell you a bit more about Higherlife Foundation, the organisation I serve.
We are a cooperating partner in education with a vision to provide people with a platform to fulfil their God-given purpose. We operate throughout Zimbabwe in agreement with the government of Zimbabwe.
Our mission is to invest in Africa’s future through education, by focusing on providing ACCESS to Education, Improving QUALITY of Education, and providing LIFE LONG DEVELOPMENT.
Under ACCESS to Education we create learning opportunities for Orphaned Vulnerable and Disadvantaged children, and for talented students, through scholarships – in particular the Capernaum Scholarship and the Joshua Nkomo Scholarship. We have to date given direct support to students some of whom have gone on to successfully complete higher education at local, regional and internationally acclaimed universities.
Through the QUALITY pillar we support educational outcomes, by improving Learner performance, and by providing Educator support. We do this by leveraging technology to create learning communities around our Technology and Learning Hubs, over 80 of them and still counting, which have been rolling out around the country at Community Centres and in some schools.
Most significantly, we contribute to improving quality of education by placing learning resources on-line, in a package we call Ruzivo Smart Learning.
Under LIFE LONG DEVELOPMENT, we facilitate continuous personal and professional development — or Mentorship — of secondary and tertiary students, OVCs, and Higherlife Foundation Alumni.
We operate in a number of African countries, and we have programming offices and field operations in Zimbabwe, Lesotho and Burundi, and a number of partners in Sub-Saharan Africa.
This year we celebrate 20 years of our work in the communities we serve; in children’s homes, in rural and urban schools, in colleges and universities at home and abroad.
As we celebrate we are very grateful to God, who gave our Founders and Patrons — Mr and Mrs Strive and Tsitsi Masiyiwa — the vision to start this work from their living room in Harare two decades ago.
Through their leadership and funding, it has spread beyond our borders and has grown to touch hundreds of thousands of lives, and to impact over 250,000 orphaned and vulnerable children.
I am sure ladies and gentleman that you can clearly see how the great work we are celebrating today and what is being done by Higherlife Foundation complement each other.
I have had the privilege of being taken around the school, its pleasing to note that through establishing the Confucius Department where children learn Chinese, Amai Mugabe Junior School is fully aware of the need to prepare our children to be global citizens who have capacity to exploit international opportunities.
I am happy to note that the school curriculum incorporates e-learning and that the student computer ratio is a favourable one. This ladies and gentlemen fulfils the President’s aspirations of empowering and equipping students with computer skills.
We are also glad to inform our guests here present that Amai Mugabe Junior is among the first schools to use the Ruzivo Smart Learning platform. I am sure that teachers can attest to the manner in which Ruzivo has positively transformed the classroom experience.
As Higherlife Foundation we believe that Ruzivo will enhance the learning experience, make learning fun again, and integrate the learning experience into modern day technology and 21st Century Skills.
May I therefore congratulate you dear parents and guardians for enrolling your students at this school. Your unwavering support will go a long way in alleviating some of the challenges the school may face.
Today is a special day which has brought us here in order to recognize the children’s personal achievements, especially those who worked hard since January. To the students who will be recognised for doing very well in Academia and Sports, I say Congratulations, Makorokoto, Amhlope! To those who will not receive awards, do not despair as your turn will also come in future. Keep on trying do not lose hope.
To the staff at Amai Mugabe Junior School, I say well done you deserve a pat on the back, by producing the best grade 7 results in 2014 and 2015, you have indeed proved that you geared towards excellence. May you continue to exert and stretch yourselves in order to fully realise Amai’s vision?
Last but not least, I wish to congratulate the ECD graduates from Amai Mugabe Nursery School who will be joining the formal school next year. Congratulations, Makorokoto, Amhlope!
In conclusion, allow me to once again extend my profound gratitude and appreciation for the Responsible Authority Her Excellence the First Lady Amai Dr Grace Mugabe through her Administration for allowing me to officiate at this magnificent school.
May our dear Lord bless us all? I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
I thank you
