2008-07-03Staff Report 2 "By Reagan Malumo KATIMA MULILO HEALTH and Social Services Minister Dr Richard Kamwi last weekend handed over a donation of blankets to 311 learners at Schuckmannsburg Combined School where temperatures have plummeted. Through his involvement and interest in the education sector, the health minister donated 320 blankets to the flood-affected learners of Schuckmannsburg. The blankets were acquired through the Chinese Embassy from the Chinese Loving Heart Charity Organisation. The health minister was impressed by the excellent performance of Schuckmannsburg Combined School in Grade 10 two years ago, and decided to boost the learners' educational morale by making the generous gesture. ""I do not charge you anything for this gift, but I want you to repay me with an extra pass mark,"" urged Kamwi. Grade 10 learners at Schuckmannsburg have been performing quite exceptionally over the past years despite the area's perennial floods. Kamwi was gratified by the fact that despite the hardships caused by floods to the learning process in the area, the learners' spirit in education was unshakable. Schuckmannsburg is always surrounded by water and learners camp at school on an annual basis to avoid daily commuting to school via dugout canoe, as this could be too dangerous. Kamwi said the country faces a shortage of doctors, engineers and geologists and thus, he urged parents and teachers to support their children and encourage them to take mathematics and science-related subjects. He thanked the Chinese Embassy for its vital support to Namibian people before and after independence. He said before independence, the Chinese Government through its Communist Party was able to share common trenches with the Namibian people and that after independence, they continued to support the Namibian Government through economic and diplomatic support. Meanwhile, on behalf of the Chinese Embassy, political councillor Lin Jing stressed the importance of the China-Namibia relationship. He believes the blankets will boost the confidence of learners in education and save them from the harsh cold. As part of the Kamwi family's patronage to education institutions, he handed over the sum of N$2 000 on behalf of his family to Sangwali Senior Secondary School to assist the school to purchase stationery for learning purposes. He noted that Sangwali has produced learners who were able to meet the Polytechnic and University of Namibia entry requirements and urged the school to continue with its good performance. The minister also used the opportunity to assure the community of Schuckmannsburg that the Government through the Ministry of Works, Transport and Communication intends to construct a health centre to serve the entire communities of Schuckmannsburg and nearby areas. " 2008-07-03Staff Report 2
