Meet Sarah

Sarah attended the first session of the PASS (Primary and Secondary SUCCESS) program in 2013. As a young girl of 13, Sarah caught the attention of her teachers with her strong spirit and drive for learning. In January of the following year, Sarah was sponsored by TEMBO to attend Lekule Girls School. Over the course of four years, Sarah developed a keen interest in nutritional sciences. During the 2017 TEMBO English Camp, she practiced her cake making skills over the open pit fire.

In November 2017, Sarah completed four years of secondary school education and wrote to TEMBO with words of gratitude. “Thank you very much for helping me because you removed me from bad cultural practices where only boys are educated. TEMBO knows the problems faced by pastoralism children and helps us to get an education. I have expanded my knowledge.”

Sarah is now completing a vocational training program in Dodoma with the support of TEMBO.

Naomi’s Wish

Naomi lives in Longido with her mother and two siblings. She was sponsored by TEMBO from 2012 to 2015 for four years of secondary school. She wrote her Form 4 exams in November 2015. When she was in secondary school, she joined the Scouts Club and was inspired to become a police officer. This is still her dream. Her family encouraged her to rewrite her Form 4 exams to upgrade her marks, so she spent a year studying at Mshikamano College in Arusha. She hopes to someday re-sit her secondary school exams.

Naomi’s mother sells beaded shukas in the village and taught Naomi how to bead. Naomi designs her own work including necklaces and bracelets and sells them to support herself and her studies.

Naomi presented a beaded shuka to TEMBO saying “It is a gift to say thank you for helping me to reach Form 4 in education.” Her wish is that other girls will have the same opportunities that she had.

Naomi’s gift to TEMBO reminds us of how grateful the girls are for TEMBO’s support and how education empowers them to give back to their community.

Naisoi’s Story

A Winning Smile and A Love of Chips

Naisoi is a girl with a winning smile and dancing eyes. She is a bright 18-year old and even at this young age her natural talent for teaching is evident. She is always eager to help other girls with their studies. The fact that she has four younger siblings that look up to her has most likely shaped her dream of becoming a Secondary School teacher.

Naisoi attended TEMBO’s PASS program in 2014, often acting in the role as a teaching assistant by helping the other girls with translations from English to Swahili. “After Primary School, I came to PASS. Now I know English very well and I am perfect in these classes. Other students bring their books to me to help them with their studies. I like working with my friends.”

Naisoi studied for four years at Lekule Girls’ School which she liked because “It gave us the confidence to speak because there are only girls.”

In her third year of studies, Naisoi had to select a stream. She decided to study CBN (Chemistry, Biology, Nutrition) because she likes to cook. “I really like to cook chips!”

What advice would she give to other students?

“Do not play at school. When you study hard, life will not become hard.”

Josephina’s Story

Focus and Determination

Josephina is an 21-year old girl with a radiant smile, infectious laugh and gentle voice. Her mother is a shopkeeper and a former member of the TEMBO Microfinance program.

When Josephina passed Primary School, her family could not afford to send her to Secondary School. She stayed home for a year and tried to study on her own and learn English. Finally, her mother came to TEMBO and received sponsorship for Josephina.

Josephina completed her first four years of secondary school at MWEDO, a girls’ school in Arusha. When she got her results, she danced with joy and then she and her mother cried. “ I was very happy because I know it is very hard to pass.”

When asked about her life at school, she replied, “ In the first year, I did not have much food and I was not eating well. Today, there is water at the school but not during my first year. We had books and a library but we had no electricity so we studied with our torches. I had to focus on what I needed to do.”

Before proceeding onto her A-levels, Josephina worked as a Primary School teacher for two months and as a teaching assistant in TEMBO’s TEC program in June 2016. She also spent time at home to help her mother who was ill. Now she has completed Form 6 and she is determined to fulfill her goal.

“When I finish my studies, I want to go to University to become a teacher. Many students cannot even finish Form 4, especially girls. If you cannot get an education, your life is very difficult.”