Mitenge Primary and secondary school NOW open

The village of Mitenge is just an hour outside the city of Ndola, but it might as well be across the world.   Village life is very separated from city life and its opportunities.   There is no electricity in the village and it would take about 4 hours to walk to town to even charge a cell phone or receive care at the nearest clinic.  For many years the only school available was a local primary school for those farmers who can afford to pay the school fees for their children to attend grades 1-7.  But in order for older students to go to grades 8-12, they had leave the village and live away from home.   That meant that a 12 year old child would have to find housing in town and take care of themselves while attending school.  That also meant that their impoverished farming family would have to be able to afford the rent and the school fees of about $150 a year for any child in the family after grade 7.  So this made a secondary education pretty unlikely for most village children and they remain uneducated as they becomes adults.   Girls are often married off young if they cannot afford school fees.  

But in 2017, AFSIA began to make a difference. We purchased property in the village of Mitenge and completed the building of a beautiful new school facility in November of 2019 to be used for a local secondary school so that these kids can have an education available to them at a lower cost and live safely at home with their families.

The building is also used for a clinic for visiting government health nurses, a church, and a community meeting place.   This is the strongest building in the whole surrounding area. This first wing of the school accommodated classes for levels PK- Grade 3 and grades 8-9.

In November 2019, 40 Fruit and floral trees were planted on the property surrounding the school, and the local children helped to tend them until they became established and strong.

In June 2020, a 50 meter deep bore hole well was added to the property for the community to have fresh clean water available, and help cut down on water borne illnesses and provide water during times of draught. Also, a toilet block was added to the school facility for sanitation, and a library full of books was opened for all the children and adults in the community to learn to read.

A second wing, adding 6 more classrooms, was completed in September 2025, which made room for grades 4-7 and grades 10-12, including a computer lab.

AFSIA has plans now to open a school playground in July of 2026. This will be an exciting addition as there are no playgrounds anywhere near this area.

Children in Mitenge have big dreams!  But without a secondary school in their village, they would either stop attending school after grade 7, or would have to walk hours in order to attend the closest secondary school in a nearby village.