End of Week Two

Written Thursday 19 August 2010

This week has seen busy mornings with further training on Excel. I am trying to get them to put together the Petty Cash Book for 2009, not only for practice, but so I have a complete twelve months of entries to demonstrate the benefit of having this information.

All of them have improved in speed with using the keyboard. This morning Head Teacher Mwelwa had a go and it was really pleasing to see them teaching him and being able to explain the whys and wherefores. They have learnt well and I feel confident that they will continue with what they have learnt even after I have left.

They had some good news yesterday when a message arrived to say the Government had paid them some funds for Term 1 (January to March). How they survive is quite amazing as they have no credit available nor could they obtain a bank loan but still they are managing. Hopefully future volunteers can lead them to obtaining further and more reliable funding for their long term financial security.

With only a week to go I am drawing my work with them to a close and ensure that I have empowered them with their first step towards cash accounting. The progress may not have been as much as they wanted before I arrived but they appear to have enjoyed mastering something new and they have become firm friends with me.