Participants in the week’s-long seminar that ran from February 06 to 10, 2012 became very enthusiastic because of the topics that were covered in the seminar. Papers covered by resource persons professional in their particular fields included: entrepreneurship; its importance, how to become an entrepreneur, and the development of an entrepreneur. This training was given by a university graduate in business and commerce Mr. Richard Makari.

On the last day of the seminar-week, Mr. Makari went on with another paper covering; how to run entrepreneurial entities; small and medium scale enterprises. He described what a commercial entity is; planning for a commercial entity; and needs in commercial undertaking. Then he covered on project evaluation and proper keeping of commercial data before finalizing with Proper recording of business transactions in elementary bookkeeping.

A second paper delivered by a competent lawyer and a practicing magistrate in The Resident Magistrate’s Court at Kilimanjaro-Moshi, Hon. Lugano Kasebele covered the most interesting; women rights in the marriage law. Her third paper looked into the cases of man domineering versus women rights in inheriting matrimonial property. Then came her fourth paper that covered on women rights in the two Tanzanian land laws; occupation and owning urban land and occupation and owning rural land. This was followed by her fifth paper that focused on Tanzanian cultural practices versus women rights in the land laws.
In many local cultural practices, women are not allowed to inherit land in cases of demise of their spouses although the law of the land allows. Teaching the local women their rights in the laws as opposed to the cultural practices is the focal point of Agape Learning Center seminars.

Women Learning Their Legal Rights in The Laws

Sr. Dorah Mrema educating participants

Women listening to Sr. Dorah Mrema

Innes, The Humble Volunteer

After a long stay in Tanzania, Ms Innes Ritchie the longest VSA serving volunteer at Agape Learning Center, has at last gone back to her home country, New Zealand. We really appreciate her work at Agape Learning Center, we shall miss her. The Center has had in different times, received a number of volunteers from abroad but Innes has been the longest working volunteer at The Center.

Innes joined the working staff of Agape Learning Center in the first week of March, 2010 and has flown back to New Zealand on the first day of September, 2011. She has done wonderful job in training trainers at The Center and much more. She has improved delivery of ICT Training at Agape Learning Center; Improved ICT course content offered at The Center; Enhanced profile of the Center within Kilimanjaro Region; and introduced good management and quality assurance processes to support the ICT Training at The Center. Amongst ICT Trainers who will never forget Innes for what they benefited from her are Brenda Simon Chuwa, Adam Massawe, and Simon Murray Kyara.

Innes introduced New Training materials: Computer Based Training Manuals; Tasks, Class Examples and Quizzes; New Exams; Course Outlines; Student Records; Class Organization; VETA documents; electronic version of Agape Tutor Store; Electronic version of IT Classes; and Electronic Version of Training Room Setup.

In marketing and publicity, she designed Brochures; website and extras.  There are a lot more to write on Innes, but in summary she has done marvelous job for Agape Learning Center that cannot be forgotten.

Also, working staff members at Agape Learning Center will not forget Mr. Kenneth Heraty, Innes’ husband. After about ten months stay in Tanzania, Innes was joined by her husband a professional carpenter who also volunteered in his profession in re-designing and making some furniture at Agape Learning Center for which we appreciate and express our gratitude.

It is the hope of The Center that the duo will in one time visit Tanzania and The Center again; We Welcome them back!

Innes and Kenneth enjoying farewell lunch at ALC

Innes giving a farewell address to staff at ALC

Kenneth giving a farewell address to staff at ALC

Same Water Authority has decided to use the computer based billing and accounting system developed for the Hai Water Project, and the course provided initial training in the use of this system. Using a Microsoft Access database, the system covers billing, customer support, fault reporting, maintenance schedules etc, and has proved very successful in Hai.

The Same participants were very pleased with the expert training and facilities provided here at Agape. Agape staff members also got the opportunity to see the system in action and participate in some of the training.

“BenkImani-Fukeni” as it is known by the local people around Moshi Rural District, Kilimanjaro Region is a village cooperative bank (VICOBA) established and being run by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania, Northern Diocese, Fukeni Parish for the benefit of its parishioners and the surrounding population of other religious denominations without discrimination.

BenkImani-Fukeni has six sub-groups each with members numbering from 35 to 43. The local bank collects weekly shares from its members, mobilizes savings and donations from different sources and applies the same to grant loans to its members for running entrepreneurial activities like; small scale business, retail shop-keeping, market vendors kiosks, buying and re-selling of farm products, animal husbandry and horticulture. The local bank also, runs a socially health development basket for its members where pressing-social needs can be financed by small loans.

Recently, professors from The Uppsala University, Sweden Dr.Jan Pettersson and Dr.Niklas Bengtsson paid an inspection visit to the local bank’s records and books of accounts. “VoicePower-Sweden” does more than inspecting the local bank. It has injected-in money for capital lending and has run lottery for the bank’s members. Those who won the lottery have had interest on their loans paid for by “Voice-Power-Sweden”. Moreove, “Voice-Power” has also donated a motorcyle to the local bank. Evangelist Raymos A. Macha, The Executive Officer of BenkImani-Fukeni uses the motorcycle to efficiently perform his duties in the parish and in BenkImani. He also rides the same to visit the bank’s sub-groups once in every week to inspect the local bank’s activities at that level.

The pictures show the two Uppsala Univeristy professors inspecting records and books of BenkImani-Fukeni (above) and in a meeting with members of BenkImani-Fukeni (left).

We hope you like it – karibuni Agape and its website!

During 10 weeks, Rickard has been at Agape working with the IT services. He has helped to redesign Agape’s website and upgraded systems in the internet cafe.

Innes Ritchie arrived in March 2010 from New Zealand for her assignment as ICT Training Advisor at Agape. She came to us under the VSA skills exchange programme which is supported by the New Zealand government. Her role has been to help improve the quality of the IT training at Agape, to introduce new advanced courses and to work with the tutors to advance their knowledge and teaching methods.

Innes is with us until the end of August 2011 – she says that she will miss Agape and its people very much. She has learned so much from us during her visit.

As part of this program, capacity building seminars were run at the Center in May and July. These two week seminars included sessions on jatropha plant farming, mushroom growing, economic production of local chicken in poultry keeping, pig keeping, and how to live with HIV/AIDS relatives at home (home-based-care). In the second week the women studied business skills, such as entrepreneurship, setting up a small business, salesmanship and bookkeeping.

The seminars were conducted by a number of well qualified specialists, including Mrs Elizabeth Kimaro (a senior agricultural officer in the District Commissioner’s office) Ms Petronilla Tarimo (senior nurse at The Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Center), Mr. Richard Makari ( graduate in Business of Commerce from Nairobi University) and Mr. Jasper Kiwia, from Sokoine University.

Hon. Mariam Bakari Lusewa delivered papers on women rights in the marriage law and rights to own land in the two land laws operating in Tanzania. She also covered topics on man-domineering custom as illegal in the written laws, and rights of widows to succeed in inheriting landed property gotten together during her marriage.

Over ninety women have benefited from these seminars in the period May – July 2010. These have come from Mandaka-Mnono, Msandaka, Fukeni and Korini-Kusini, all villages which are in Mbokomu Ward and Mahoma, Sango villages in Old Moshi Ward.

For more information about forthcoming seminars, please contact Agape Learning Center