WATER, HEALTH AND FOOD SECURITY

Posted on February 22, 2024 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

After the recent outbreak of cholera in Zambia, that has been contained, schools, colleges and universities opened on the 8th February. Fortunately, cholera was not prevalent in areas of the Kazungula District where we work.

We are aiming to supply more schools and communities with boreholes to provide safe drinking water, to help prevent diseases such as cholera, and for the irrigation of community vegetable growing projects. After the poor rainy season in the Southern Province boreholes are vital for health and food production.

In addition to the agricultural project for disabled youths in Mukuni, Ngandu and Kamwi villages we are initiating more sustainable income-generating projects for women. The existing women’s Mangoes of Hope project, also funded by Give a Hope Canada, has been given a boost. After donating fencing, seeds and fertilizer, the women are growing broccoli, cauliflower and beans for the tourism industry.

A second group of women in Musokotwane will have a similar project. A borehole has already been installed and once the water system is in place and the area fenced, the women will get to work. Another project for women in Siambelele village, Mukuni Chiefdom is also underway after a borehole was installed at the end of 2023. These projects are invaluable for improving food security and for giving women a opportunity to earn money to support their families.

SIAMBELELE WOMEN WELCOME A NEW INITIATIVE

Thanks to continual support from Blooms The Chemist, Australia, three rural clinics in Simonga, Bunsanga and Mambova receive a continual donation of medical equipment and supplies. The Ministry of Health are providing additional structures at Simonga, which will become a ‘walk-in’ clinic for people travelling to and from the Botswana border. A new health post, that we are currently building, in the remote village of Mabwa, in Nyawa Chiefdom will shortly be completed. This is thanks to a grant received from the Guernsey Overseas Aid and Development Commission.

Since the government announced that Primary and Secondary schools are to be separated there is a need for more classrooms in most schools. In addition to a substantial donation from The Murphy Family Foundation, which has enabled us to construct two 1×3 classroom blocks at Musokotwane and River View Secondary schools we have funding in place from private donors to construct three more. Nguba Secondary and Bbombwe Lyangoma Primary schools are next on the list!

MUSOKOTWANE SECONDARY SCHOOL CLASSROOM 1X3 BLOCK

For those of you who kindly donated to our appeal to restore Musokotwane Primary school after a storm had caused extensive damage, the school now has new and reinforced roofs.

None of the above could have been achieved without the tremendous support from our existing and new donors, and to our incredible team of volunteers both in the UK and Zambia.

Jane Kaye-Bailey

Founder

EMPOWERING GIRLS AND YOUNG PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

Posted on October 12, 2023 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

Since the 1st April, the start of The Butterfly Tree’s financial year I have been overwhelmed by the support we are receiving. Existing and new donors are helping us to reach out to more remote communities and to help girls and vulnerable young people.

World Mental Health Day was on the 10th October. The world we live in today increases the risk of mental health issues which have a negative effect on our daily lives. Social media, 24-hour news, global warming, natural disasters, disease, and conflict to name just some the many problems people face globally.

We are delighted to receive a donation from our Canadian partner, Give a Hand, to initiate a project to empower young people with mental and physical disabilities and those who were born with HIV. Sixty young people from Mukuni, N’gandu and Kamwi villages will be given the opportunity to raise chickens, and to grow crops and vegetables to create a sustainable income-generating cooperative. This is a rare opportunity as there is very little on offer to help people with disabilities in Zambia.

A new health post is currently being constructed thanks to a further grant from the Guernsey Overseas Aid Commission. The location at Mabwa, a remote area in Nyawa – the facility includes a clinic, two staff houses, a biodigester, toilets, a borehole and equipment. A shelter is to be constructed at Simonga health post donated by Blooms the Chemist, Australia who offer ongoing support for Simonga, Bunsanga and Mambova clinics.

A generous donation from The Murphy Family Foundation is being used to expand Musokotwane and River View Secondary Schools. Each school will have an additonal 1×3 classroom block and desks, with the former receiving computers and connection to power. A classroom block at Katubuya Community School will shortly be completed and funding is in place to build an entire new school.

As always there is a great need to provide safe drinking water in remote schools and villages. A substantial donation from Nick Bousliman for water and food projects will help thousands of vulnerable people. Creating sustainable feeding programmes in schools and helping people to grow crops, other than maize, that are less dependent on rain is a priority is essential.

Teenage pregnancies and early marriages prevent girls from completing their education. With the support of the Blackpool Cup and the Society of the Sacred Heart we are travelling to remote areas to conduct workshops on HIV prevention, teenage pregnancies, early marriages, and drug and alcohol abuse. We invite pupils, teachers, traditional and civic leaders and medical staff.

We are more forming girls’ football teams to give girls an activity and to empower them. To date there are 15 teams. This is what one deputy head teacher told us ‘Since the inception of girls soccer, we have noticed a trend for girls playing soccer avoid casual sex and a big reduction in teenage pregnancy and dropouts due to early marriage. Before the inception we lost 14 girls from grade 8 last year but we haven’t recorded any this year among players.’

Thank you to everyone for your overwhelming support.

Jane Kaye-Bailey

Founder

FURTHER HEALTH AND EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT IN REMOTE ZAMBIA

Posted on February 21, 2023 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

As the rainy season in Zambia continues crops are growing and boreholes, rivers and streams are filling up. However, during this period some rural schools, clinics and villages become inacessible as tracks become flooded. This is why The Butterfly Tree continues to source remote areas in need of health and education facilities. The following feedback, received this weekend, from a nurse at Katondo health post, confirms how vital these projects are:

‘An elderly woman had collapsed with BP. In the past she would have been taken to Kauwe Health Centre a distance of 15km, but with the rains the roads are currently impassable. She was treated in Katondo and went home the following morning. The next day an expectant mother was in an emergency situation, nurses safely delivered the baby at the facility.’ These rural health posts are vital – this mother and elderly women would not have been unable to travel to Kauwe Health Centre due to the rains.

Thanks to the tremendous support from the Overseas Aid and Development Commission in Guernsey we have developed health posts at Sikaunzwe, Bunsanga and Katondo with one currently under construction at Boombwe. We have also built health posts at Mahalulu and Mambova and added maternity wards and mother’s shelters in ten other areas. With readily available access to medical care in the West it is diffilcult to comprehend the need for improved healthcare in countries like Zambia.

This month we were delighted to receive a substantial donation from one of our private donors to build more classrooms. We are still finding mud and pole schools built by the community, in the Kazungula District, and though it is better than having no school the buildings are totally inadequate especially when it is raining. The pictures below show Bunsanga before and after our support, it can now take pupils from grade one to seven. We aim to develop three more schools this year.

Education is the key to overcoming poverty and its related issues. Following the United Nations Development Goal 4 – ‘Quality Education’ thousands of children in rural areas are in education. We were delighted to learn that out of eleven pupils on sponsorship at Mukuni High School, ten have gained their final certificates. More orphans from Mukuni, Ng’andu, Kamwi and Senkobo have joined the orphan sponsorship programme this year, having recently lost one or both parents.

SPONSORED ORPHANS – NG’ANDU JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL

Further support has been received from the Blackpool Cup organisers after selecting The Butterfly Tree as their charity partner for 2023. Two of our trustees from The Butterfly Tree, Zambia have been invited to the Blackpool Cup, an International Youth Football Tournament. The organisers will host and accommodate the trustees, and footballs from the event will be donated to the charity. Teams are are also being asked to donate football strips for our youth football teams in Zambia.

ONE OF FOUR FOOTBALL TOURNAMENTS SPONSORED BY THE BLACKPOOL CUP

The Butterfly Tree has been shortlisted for the Water Air Food Awards in Denmark. Our comprehensive application was on Food Security and how we provided emergency relief for thousands of children and communities, suffering from severe hunger and famine, during the 2019-20 drought. We need votes and would be grateful if you would consider voting for our initiative, which will shortly be published on the WAFA Award website.

HEALTH, EDUCATION & FOOD SECURITY

Posted on January 17, 2023 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

The new school year in Zambia is now underway. I am pleased to report that most pupils on our orphan sponsorship programme have passed their grade 7 and 9 exams, with some gaining very good results. A further six pupils from Mukuni and three from River View completed high school in December. Their grade 12 results will be announced next month. Eight students are currently attending universities and college, while those who took skills courses last year, are doing work experience. The Murphy Family Foundation and the Mukuni Village Trust, Australia, have given considerable support to help orphans and vulnerable youths.

Thanks to a substantial donation from Nick Bousliman fifty rural schools received bags of seeds and fertilizer for their school gardens, to create sustainable feeding programmes. This generous donation also included 2,000 bags of ground maize for the elderly and vulnerable families, and five boreholes. In addition to this, donations from our successful Christmas Appeal enabled us to distribute more bags of ground maize in Mukuni, Sekute, Musokotwane and Nyawa. One grateful beneficiary from Nyawa sent the following message to The Butterfly Tree.

‘Food is scarce to us elderly especially at this time of year. I am a diabetic and having no food is a danger. Last week I collapsed and a good Samaritan took me to hospital where they put me on a drip of glucose. I didn’t have any food since the morning. Now that I have this bag of maize I will be moving with a bowl of nsima and eat whenever I feel weak. Thank you Butterfly Tree for saving lives.’

The second phase of the new health post at Boombwe is underway. The development, funded by the Overseas Aid and Development Commission, Guernsey, includes a clinic, two staff houses, toilets and biodigester. Mosquito nets were donated to Boombwe school children as there is a high prevalence of malaria. Blooms the Pharmacy, Australia continue to provide medical supplies for Bunsanga, Simonga and Mambova health posts.

The three women’s projects in partnership with Give a Hand, Canada are going well. Muyunda women are busy collecting honey from wild bees to earn an income by selling honey and beeswax. The Musokotwane ‘Mangoes of Hope’ women sold all the jam they made during the mango season and will again grow tomatoes until the next season. The ‘Hope for a Better Future’, which includes rearing chicken and growing vegetables for women in Sekute, is doing exceptionally well. The women have sought good markets for the chicken and vegetables’ sales, which are proving to be highly lucrative.

During the Christmas holidays three football tournaments took place for U-17 girls in Mukuni, Senkobo and Nyawa, and one for U-17 boys in Mukuni. The aim is to help prevent HIV, early pregnancies, alcohol and drug abuse by encouraging youths to engage in sport. All participants must attend The Butterfly Tree HIV prevention workshops. This was sponsored by Blackpool Cup who have chosen The Butterfly Tree as their charity partner for their 2023 tournament.

MUKUNI UNDER-SEVENTEEN’S FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT WINNERS

Jane Kaye-Bailey

Founder

CHRISTMAS GREETINGS AND 2022 HIGHLIGHTS

Posted on December 19, 2022 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

On behalf of The Butterfly Tree trustees in the UK and Zambia we would like to wish all our donors, supporters, volunteers and fundraisers a very happy Christmas and a healthy and peaceful New Year.

As another year closes the charity shortly enters its seventeenth year and once again I am pleased to report that we’ve had a very succussful year. Below are some of the highlights:

Completion of a health post with staff houses – Katondo
Completion of a classroom – Mubuyu community school
Completion of a classroom – Kamwi junior school
Completion of a classroom – Chabalanda junior
Completion of a classroom – Mukuni junior school
Expansion of Sichifulo junior secondary school
Donation of desks – Mukuni and Kamwi junior schools
Donations of textbooks to 20 schools
Installation of seven boreholes for schools and communities
Two mother’s shelters – Manyemuyemu and Siakachapa
Support to health centres – Mambova, Simonga, Bunsanga and Mukuni
Donation of mosquito nets to school children and insecticidal coating of houses – Moomba
20 community houses for orphans and widows
‘Mangoes of Hope’ – sustainable community project for women – Musokotwane
‘Hope for the Future’ – sustainable community project for women – Sekute
Sponsorship of 7 university students and 14 college students
Sponsorship of 250 orphans and vulnerable children
Donation of seeds and fertilizer to 50 schools for sustainable feeding programmes
Distribution of 2,500 bags of ground maize to orphans and vulnerable families
Two staff houses soon to be completed – Musokotwane high school
Health post currently under construction – Boombwe

Thanks to your tremendous support we have enabled thousands more vulnerable children to have access to safe water, feeding programmes, improved health and education facilities, malaria and HIV prevention and better houses. In addition, women have sustainable income-generating enterprises and communites have boreholes and accessible health posts and no longer have to walk long distances for these essential services.

Jane Kaye-Bailey

Founder

CHRISTMAS FUNDRAISER AND SUCCESS FOR ORPHANS

Posted on November 30, 2022 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

With less than a month to go until Christmas Day The Butterfly Tree is appealing for donations to purchase bags of maize for vulnerable children and families, and the elderly. At this time of year food is in short supply as there has been no rain for six months. Communities and schools are busy ploughing their land, but it will be another few months before crops are ready. There is a great deal of hunger, and many people are surviving on just one meal a day.

As the rainy season approaches this is also the time of year when children are in need of protection from malaria. Our ‘mosquito nets for schools‘ programme is proving to be highly effective. Each pupil and teacher are given a mosquito net to prevent contracting malaria. According to the World Health Organisation ‘in 2020, nearly half of the world’s population was at risk of malaria. Most cases and deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa.’

For just £6 ($7) we can purchase a 25kg of ground maize or a mosquito net. 100% of all donations will be used for this purpose, nothing will be deducted for admin or personal fees. If you would like to make a donation, please use this link to see the different payment options: DONATE

The Zambian school year is about to close and all the sponsored orphans and vulnerable children are being given a bag of ground maize. Now in its sixteenth year the orphan sponsorship programme has helped hundreds of individual children. A further twelve pupils have just completed high school, some of them have been on the programme from grade one through to grade twelve. This opportunity is life-changing and gives children, who live in extreme poverty, hope and a chance of a better future.

MULIMA HEAD BOY AT MUKUNI HIGH SCHOOL IN 2022

In addition, ten students participating in skills courses at Libes college in Livingstone, have also completed and waiting for their certificates. The courses included building, carpentry, plumbing, catering, and forward and clearing. Seven students are currently on degree courses, thanks to The Murphy Family Foundation.

DAVID, ALICE, THABO, ALICE AND AUGUSTINE COMPLETE COLLEGE

We are delighted to welcome John Staab a long-term sponsor and volunteer, to Mukuni. His company, Motive Real Estate, Texas donates a community house to orphans and widows for every house he sells. John has also funded the restoration of a classroom, which he is currently working on with our local team. Volunteering is a great way to experience local culture and to see a traditional way of life. Past volunteers, like John, loved this life-changing experience and continue to support The Butterfly Tree.

It’s mango season in Zambia and women in Musokotwane are busy drying mangoes, and producing jam and fresh juice. ‘Mangoes of Hope’ initiated by The Butterfly Tree and generously funded by our Canadian partner, Give a Hand, will not only provide food security for the women but also give them a sustainable income to support their families.

With focus on the World Cup taking place in Qatar we are delighted to have been chosen as the nominated charity partner for the 2023 Blackpool Cup. The Butterfly Tree supports football for youths as well as empowering girls to help prevent them being enticed into early marriages, teenage pregnancies, and drug and alcohol abuse. Blackpool Cup has given a generous donation to fund a tournament in Zambia and will promote our work at their International Youth Football tournament next year.

A donation, however small, to our Christmas Appeal can really make a difference to a protect a child against malaria or to feed a family. Please click on this link if you would like to make a donation: DONATE

2021-22 HIGHLIGHTS GIVE HOPE TO THOUSANDS

Posted on May 3, 2022 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

Despite all the challenges and the increase in demand for charity donations, I am delighted to report that 2021-22 was the second-best year since the founding of The Butterfly Tree. The only other year when we raised more money was in 2019-20, though almost a quarter of the donations was to assist with emergency food relief when The Southern and Western Provinces suffered the worst drought in over 30 years. This past year has been exceptional and thanks to our local team in Zambia numerous projects have been successfully initiated, managed and monitored.

There were many highlights during the past year – the main one being the development of a rural health post in the remote area of Katondo in Nyawa Chiefdom. Once again we received a generous grant award from Guernsey Overseas Aid and Development Commission to fund this. The project included a clinic, two staff houses, toilets, a borehole and a biodigester, as well as equipment and mosquito nets. This is a great assett to the area as the nearest clinic was in excess of 20km. We are also grateful to Blooms the Chemist, Australia, who sent regular donations to support Simonga, Bunsanga and Mambova Rural Health Centres.

NEW HEALTH POST – KANTONDO

As always we continue to support malaria prevention. According to The World Health Organisation’s latest malaria report 2020 saw an increase of 14,000,000 on the previous year and 627,000 deaths. This increase was partly due to the disruptions in distributions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Thanks to further donations from the Association of Inner Wheel and Stratford Rotary Club we have donated insecticidal coating to Moomba Chiefdom, and several thousand mosquito nets to schools in Moomba and Ngwezi areas.

‘MOSQUITO NETS FOR SCHOOLS’ – MALIMBA

The Murphy Family Foundation gave a substantial donation towards our education programmes. This donation provided textbooks, shared amongst primary and secondary schools throughout the Kazungula District, but the majority of the Foundation’s funding paid for further education. Five students who completed school after being on The Butterfly Tree’s orphan sponsorship programme are currently attending university reading the following courses: pharmacy, engineering, accountancy (2) and teaching. In addition, eight students are learning skills at college. A further six young women are being funded to go to college by Theirworld and two private donors are sponsoring two nurses.

TEXTBOOK DONATIONS – KAZUNGULA RURAL SCHOOLS

The Butterfly Tree has been sponsoring orphans since 2006. Every year more sponsors come on board and this year Senkobo Primary School was added to this list. The other schools where orphans and vulnerable children are being sponsored are: Mukuni, Kamwi, Ngandu, Ndele and River View and Kazungula Boarding School. Nine pupils completed school in December 2021 – the girls at River View gained exceptionally good results. Standards at River View, situated next to Botswana border, have improved considerably since we built the high school, rarely do girls fall pregnant or enter into early marriages.

ORPHAN SPONSORSHIP – SENKOBO PRIMARY SCHOOL

There are still far too many pupils still learning in mud and pole buildings and overcrowded rooms. We constructed a classroom block at Kamwi Primary School to enrol grades 8 and 9 pupils, which will save them having to walk the long journey to Mukuni. A classroom block in Chabalanda, Musokotwane Chiefdom, was completed at the end of last year, and one is currently being built at Mubuyu in Nyawa. The community at Sichifulo had attempted to build a classroom block and science lab but this would have taken years. Using money left to The Butterfly Tree by the late Richard Reid, a retired teacher who volunteered in Zambia after which he supported the sponsorship of orphans for many years, this project will shortly be completed.

NEW CLASSROOM BLOCK – CHABALANDA

As always there is a need for boreholes. Last year we were fortunate to have been awarded a substantial grant from Fedex. This enabled us to install boreholes in remote areas where the communities relay on drawing drinking water from streams and rivers. The rainy season is about to end, therefore we will shortly resume this vital programme and add the remainder of the boreholes from the grant aid as well as others. One of our donors will be running the Vitality London 10k race on May 2nd to raise money for a borehole for Haboomba, which will supply 1,558 people with safe clean water.

SUCCESSFUL DRILLING FOR A BOREHOLE – NAMPAKA

Give a Hand, our Canadian partner, who had previously funded a beekeeping project for 200 women in Mubuyu gave a further donation to progress with the ‘Mangoes of Hope’ project for 200 women in Musokotwane. The women have received extensive training in the production of dried mangoes, mango juice, mango jam and mango chutney. Give a Hand also funded a chicken and vegetable growing project for 200 Sekute, which will shortly up and running. Each of these projects will provide sustainable income-generating enterprices for women living in remote areas.

MANGO PRODUCTION – MUSOKOTWANE

Several of the orphans on our sponsorship programme were given new homes thanks to Motive Real Estate, Texas, In addition, a private donor sent a donation to fund four more houses for widows and orphans. These will be finished once the dried grasses are available for the thatched roofs. No one is permitted to cut the grasses until June when they should be completely dry. Women in Manyemuyemu and Sikachapa have welcomed the addition of mother’s shelters in their communities. Women who live a long distance from the health centre will no longer opt to deliver their babies at home, instead they can stay at the shelters a week prior to the onset of labour. These were kindly funded by the Society of the Sacred Heart who also funded a Girls’ Empowerment project, which is proving to be invaluable.

GIRLS’ EMPOWERMENT – MUKUNI VILLAGE

Towards the end of this financial year youths in Mukuni Chiefdom had a major highlight. We have been working with Pepe’s Zambia-Football Foundation for the past two years. Founder, Scott McClure, after donating a vast amount of football strips and equipment and two new goal posts for Mukuni pitches, arrived in Zambia. Organised by The Butterfly Tree a tournament with twelve teams taking place was scheduled for early April. We use football and netball as a means to creating awareness of the dangers of HIV, teenage pregnancies, and alcohol and drug abuse.

MUKUNI UNITED FOOTBALL TEAM

The new financial year for 2022-23 has got off to a good start and we hope the support will continue during the next 12 months. If you would like to support a specific project please contact jane@thebutterflytree.org.uk or if you would like to help Zahid raise money for a borehole at Haboomba please click on this link

Many, many thanks to all our generous donors and fundraisers for making this such a successful year, and to all our volunteers in the UK and Zambia for their committment and dedication in helping to improve the lives of orphans and vulnerable people. A full Annual Report will be published once our accounts have been audited.

Jane Kaye-Bailey

CHRISTMAS GREETINGS FROM THE BUTTERFLY TREE

Posted on December 16, 2021 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

With Christmas just around the corner and the end of 2021 fast approaching many of you will be reflecting on the challenges of the past year and feeling anxious about what the New Year will bring. COVID-19 and climate change dominate the news and effects everyone of us, most especially people living in poor countries such as Zambia.

Despite all the uncertainties I am delighted to inform you that this has been one of the best years in the history of The Butterly Tree. Thanks to the overwhelming support from our donors we have expanded our reach to more schools and communities in the Kazungula District, and many more orphans are being educated at school, university and college.

One young lady who has just completed a three year course in bio medicine sent us this message: ‘I am writing this message as I am thankful for the support that you have provided by sponsoring my education in 2019-2021 academic years at Kafue Institute where I was studying for a diploma in clinical medicine. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you, you have shown your sincere kindness by lending a hand in my education. Your sponsorship has helped me to realize that dreams do come true and that I can be what I want to be. My family is secure knowing that my education is steady and now, on behalf of my family and myself, I pour out my humble thanks.’

MWANDU FROM MUKUNI VILLAGE COMPLETES BIO MEDICINE COURSE

There is great excitement in Nyawa after two boreholes were installed At Nsizo school and for the Kampaka community. A further two are being installed this week with three more to follow in Musokotwane Cheifdom, thanks to a grant award from Fedex. Seeds for schools have been donated to twenty school to grow vegetables for their sustainable feeding programmes.

SUCCESSFUL DRILL AT KATONDO

The rural health post at Kantondo is making great progress with the clinic, two staff houses, toilets and biodigester soon to be completed. This was generously funded by Guernsey Overseas Aid and Development Commission. The second of two mother’s shelter, funded by the Society of the Sacred Heart, has been completed by Siakacapa health post, which will provide women with safe accommodation prior to the onset of labour.

NEW MOTHER’S SHELTER – SIKACAPA

OLD MOTHER’S SHELTER – SIKACAPA

Eight more orphans are to receive houses after receiving a donation from Motive Real Estate, Texas. The company donates a house for every one they sell. Many orphans live in dilapidated dwellings which leak during the rainy season. 300 bags of maize are beimng given at Christmas to every orphan and vulnerable child on our orphan sponsorship programme.

The Butterfly Tree Girls’ Empowerment programme has recently been launched. One of our UK volunteers has written a booklet to educate girls about the dangers of early pregnancies, HIV and alcohol and drug abuse. Natasha and Malala completed a six week workshop in Mukuni witt the aim of expanding this to all schools throughout the District.

SPONSORED GIRLS AT MUKUNI PARTICIPATE IN WORKSHOPS

A new classroom block at Chablanda in Musokotwane is now under construction with another one scheduled for Nyawa in January. These will help more children to have access to higher grades. As we have heard from Mwandu education is vital to overcoming poverty.

The successful malaria prevention campaign has helped to protect many more children. We aim to support schools around the Ngwezi River where there is a high prevalence of malaria. If you would like to make a donation a mosquito net costs just £5 or $7. Or if you would prefer your donation to be used to purchase a bag of maize for £5 or $7, please add a comment when making a donation.

On behalf of the entire team I send our grateful thanks to all our donors, volunteers, fundraisers and supporters and wish you a very happy Christmas and good health in the New Year.

Jane Kaye-Bailey

EXCITING UPDATES AND FUNDRAISING AT CHRISTMAS

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

With just over one month to go, the Christmas bustle is underway. The Butterfly Tree has started a fundraising campain to provide mosquito nets and bags of maize for orphans and vulnerable children living in rural areas of Zambia.

‘Globally every two minutes a child dies from malaria – out of 400,000 deaths per year, 67% of these are children under the age of five in sub-Sahara Africa.’

The rainy season in Zambia has started, the time when children’s lives at risk if they contract malaria. Through interventions children can be protected and the most effective way is to provide a mosquito net. Due to limited supplies pregnant women and children under five are given priority, which means that school children are not covered. Our ‘mosquito nets for schools‘ is proving to be highly effective with positive results being achieved.

DISTIBUTION OF MOSQUITO NETS – MUYNUNDA COMMUNITY SCHOOL

At this time of year food is also in short supply. The dry season, which started in April lasts for 6 months, coupled with the impact of COVID-19 many families resort to just one meal a day. A bag of ground maize costs just £5 ($7) and can feed a family of four for three weeks.

BAGS OF GROUND MAIZE DONATED TO ORPHANS – KAMWI VILLAGE

We are delighted to have been awarded a grant from Fedex, South Africa to install 7 boreholes in rural schools and communities. This generous donation will transform the lives of thousands of women and children. No longer will they have to spend hours fetching water from rivers and streams, which are polluted, and one of the main causes of diarrhoeal diseases.

7 BOREHOLES FOR REMOTE SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITIES

The Katando Health Post development is progressing with the clinic and the two staff houses currently under construction, funded by the Overseas Aid and Development Commission of Guernsey. Blooms the Pharmacy, Australia, regular support for Simonga, Bunsanga and Mombova health posts is invaluable. We have also donated PPE to Mukuni Health Centre.

KATONDO HEALTH POST CLINIC

The third women’s project comprising of a workshop, chicken coop, equipment and seeds will help 200 women in the Sekute Chiefdom. A water solar-powered water reticulation system has been installed, and our youth builders are now on site. This project, funded by our Canadian partner Give a Hand.

SOLAR-POWERED WATER RETICULATION SYSTEM

We have extended our orphan sponsorship programme to Senkobo School in Musokotwane Chiefdom. Eight pupils, who had all dropped out of school after losing their parents have been reinstated. Such is the poverty that two girls had to borrow shoes from friends to return to school to sit their examinations. The sponsorship includes school and exam fees, uniforms, shoes, school bag and books for a cost of £110 per pupils, per annum.

ONE OF 8 PUPILS NOW ON SPONSORSHIP – SENKOBO SCHOOL

We are absolutely thrilled and humbled to have received an award for the Best Orphan Charity of the Year.

An exciting event took part in Mukuni Chiefdom last month after we sponsored a football tournment to create awareness of HIV. The event which was the first ever tournamant in this remote area of the Chiefdom, was held in Siamasimbi. Eight teams took part with Mukuni united being declared the winners. Pepe’s Zambia-Football Foundation kindly donated the kits for each team.

MUKUNI UNITED FOOTBALL TEAM, INCLUDING SPONSORED ORPHANS

The Butterfly Tree malaria prevention campaign has got off to a great start after two successful presentations to Inner Wheel Club Districts 12 and 20. 100% of all funds raised will be used to purchase mosquito nets for school children. If you would like to make a donation so that we can reach out to as many schools as possible please click on this link, The cost for a mosquito net is £5, there has been a recent increase due to the strengthening of the Zambian currency and inflation.

Or if you would prefer your donation to be used to purchase a bag of maize for £5, please add a comment when making a donation.

If you own a company perhaps you would consider making a charity donation instead of sending Christmas cards, which often end up in the bin and more trucks are needed to deliver them!

This comment from Business Waste is worth reading: “People seem to think that sending Christmas cards doesn’t do much harm to the environment because of the perception that all cardboard is easily recycled. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. People chuck their cards into the recycling bin, which causes havoc at recycling centres causing whole loads of paper to be dumped because it’s contaminated with glitter.” In addition to this more trucks are needed to deliver cards causing a further impact on the environment.

Many thanks to everyone who has already supported this campaign and to all the generous donors who have put their trust in The Butterfly Tree.

THE BUTTERFLY TREE ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2020 – 2021

Posted on September 27, 2021 by Jane Kaye-Bailey

I am delighted to present to you The Butterfly Tree’s Annual Report and Accounts, for our financial year ending on the 31st March 2021. The full version of the report and accounts, including wonderful pictures of our beneficiaries, can be viewed by clicking on this link: Annual Report 2020-21

During the entire year only 3.66% of total expenditure was spent on expenses, 96.34% went into our charitable projects.

Chairman’s Report

In January 2006 I visited Zambia and Mukuni Village for the very first time, little did I know that 15 years later the charity I founded would still be flourishing. Despite all the challenges of the past year The Butterfly Tree has managed to sustain our existing projects while sourcing new ones. Thanks to the incredible support from our loyal donors, as well as new ones, we continue to implement a diverse section of projects relating to water, food, health and education.

JANE IN THE REMOTE AREA OF DUNDUMWEZI

Though I have not been able to travel to Zambia since February 2020 I am in daily communication with our local team, who have been outstanding. Mindful of the risks to prevent the spread of COVID-19, they continued to work tirelessly throughout the year to help those most in need. In March 2020 communities in the Southern Province were still suffering from the effects of a severe drought then COVID-19 emerged. Many of the villages, especially Mukuni, rely heavily on tourism due to their close proximity to the Victoria Falls, A World Heritage site. No one received any income that year, and in a country with such a poor economy, there was no handouts.

NGANDU JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL – MUKUNI CHIEFDOM

To support people through this dire situation The Butterfly Tree regularly donated bags of ground maize to orphans and vulnerable children, the elderly, and those that had no means to support themselves. In addition, we offered funding for farming projects. We also provided vast amounts of PPE to rural health centres, schools once they reopened, and the Kazungula Border. Masks were made by local youths and given to the schools. The spread of the virus in 2020 was somewhat contained, but sadly the South African variant took its toll at the beginning of 2021, during this period the Ministry of Health commenced their vaccination programme.

PPE DONATIONS WERE GIVEN TO CLINICS AND SCHOOLS

Though the schools were closed for a three month period the government extended term times by shortening the holidays. During the year a major development took place at Musokotwane Secondary School after receiving a substantial donation. This included a 1×3 classroom block, science lab, two boarding houses, toilets, and a solar-powered water reticulation system to support a sustainable food production unit. This was one of six that were installed and will be invaluable during the dry season and periods of drought.

SOLAR-POWERED WATER RETICULATION SYSTEM – MUSOKOTWANE SECONDARY SCHOOL

Vasts amounts of textbooks were donated to schools, which has helped to improve examination results with several of our sponsored orphans gaining certificates after completing grade 12. Ten students were sponsored on degree and diploma courses, with one young man completing a three year course in bio-medics. Orphans were sponsored at Mukuni, N’gandu, Kamwi, Ndele, River View, Siavonga, and Kazungula Boarding School. More school leavers are being offered further education opportunities for both academic and skill based courses in September.

VAST AMOUNTS OF TEXTBOOKS GIVEN TO RURAL SCHOOLS

Fundraising during lockdown was difficult and some organisations providing cut their international grants. In April 2020 The Butterfly Tree took part in the 2.6 Challenge, a fundraising event to replace the London Marathon. Despite the short notice our Trustees, volunteers and their families, as well as some of our donors took part and raised a substantial amount of funds for bags of maize and mosquito nets. Later that year The Choirs of Pembrooke College, Cambridge University, held a Bach-a-Thon to raise money for food shortages in Mukuni Village.

DISTRIBUTIONS OF GROUND MAIZE TOOK PLACE THROUGHOUT THE YEAR

In addition to installing boreholes in five schools and one for a farming project in Mukuni, solar-powered water reticulation systems were installed at Musokotwane, River View, Katapazi, Singwamba, Matengu and Chaba schools, and Bunsanga Health Post. Seeds were given to schools to grow maize, sorghum and vegetables. Surplus produce was sold to the community, profits are then used to support orphans and to buy school supplies.

DRILLING FOR WATER – CHIKWAMA

Bunsanga Health Post is now in full use and proving to be invaluable for maternity care and COVID-19. We provided PPE to thirty rural health centres as well as medical supplies for Mukuni, Simonga, Mambova and Bunsanga clinics. Support was given to children in need of medical attention and the a project has been initiated to help period poverty with the use of sanitary pads, which are being made by youths in Mukuni.

DONATED ITEMS – SIMONGA MATERNITY WARD

Our peer education programme in HIV prevention, teenage pregnancies, early marriages, and alcohol and drug abuse, is having an impact. Football and netball teams have been formed in many rural villages to help tackle the above challenges, engaging youths in sport is one of the most successful ways to keep them occupied. We have sponsored football and netball competitions, and this coming year we aim to expand this programme after receiving a substantial donation of football strips and equipment.

SUBSTANTIAL DONATION OF FOOTBALL STRIPS DISTRIBUTED IN RURAL COMMUNITIES

At the forefront of our contribution to the health sector is malaria prevention. COVID-19 took precedence over malaria and other major healthissues, not because the interventions were unavailable but due to the delay in obtaining supplies, and distribution by the Ministry of Health. The Butterfly Tree provided safe insecticidal coating to paint 650 dwellings in Moomba Chiefdom and disbursed larvicide in pools and streams. To provide universal coverage mosquito nets were donated to the schools in this Chiefdom. In addition, Singwamba and Chuunga schools also were added to our ‘mosquito nets for schools’ programme, as earlier this year there was high prevalence of malaria, in Nyawa Chiefdom.

MOSQUITO NETS FOR SCHOOLS – MALIMBA JUNIOR SECONDARY

Community projects continue to be well supported. In addition to the beekeeping projects for 200 women in Muyunda a new project called ‘Mangoes of Hope’ has been initiated for 200 women in Musokotwane. These will provide sustainable income-generating enterprises for women. A further 12 community houses have been built for orphans and the elderly.

BEEKEEPING PROJECT FOR 200 WOMEN – MUYUNDA

Without the support of our wonderful team of volunteers both in the UK and Zambia, none of this could have been achieved. My sincere thanks to fellow Trustees Ann Sutton (Treasurer), Miranda de Freston and Jackie Brown. Miranda has since resigned as a Trustee to concentrate on a local charity in her town. Miranda has been a valuable member of the team for several years and we wish her all the best with her future endeavours. David, Carolyn, Valerie and Leah, provide vital support in administration, fundraising and safeguarding and we are delighted to welcome Meg Over to our team, who volunteered for us in Zambia in 2018. All offer an invaluable contribution to our work. Our overseas volunteers provide furthersupport – Frank Maiolo (US), Marilee Gibson and Katie Kung (Canada).

The Zambian team, comprising of the four Trustees who have been with us since 2006 – Mupotola Siloka (Secretary and project management), Presley Mulenga (education), Martin Mushabati (ground operations), Stain Musungaila (malaria and community projects). Volunteers – Sibeso Maseka (Environmental Technician), Natasha Mufuya and Mafian Sitali (orphan sponsorship and community housing), Lloyd Kasela and Harold Chilikwazi (community projects). Their vital input, in implementing, monitoring and managing the projects on the ground, during a global pandemic, has been remarkable. I cannot be praise them enough for keeping everything moving during these most difficult of circumstances.

Though COVID-19 is still effecting all of us The Butterfly Tree has some exciting projects in place for 2021-22. On behalf of The Butterfly Tree I wish to thank all our donors that have supported us during this challenging year. It is impossible to name everyone, but every donation helps us to sustain our vital programmes in Zambia, to initiate new projects in remote areas, and to reach out to orphans and vulnerable children living in extreme poverty. Opposite are the names of our major donors who have contributed so much to the success of The Butterfly Tree. Our sincere thanks for your generosity and for putting your trust in our grassroots charity. As always we are grateful to Grenfell James, Stratford-upon-Avon for freely verifying the charity accounts. Despite all the challenges we were able to continue running the charity effectively,thanks to Zoom presentations and meetings, virtual fundraisers, and our amazing team of Trustees and volunteers both in the UK and Zambia, and most especially our generous donors.

‘I cannot understate how impressed I am by all the wonderful work you’re doing at the Butterfly Tree. It’s just fantastic!!!! So positive in every way.’ –
Angela Antonas
‘Life is all about fate and opportunities and it was very much Zambia’s good fortune that you made that trip. You’ve changed the lives of thousands which is something few people can say. I remember seeing you in the foyer of the Zambezi Sun and then visiting the village the following day and then realizing that the sign on the building for Butterfly Tree was you. My favorite charity by miles.’ – John McGhee.
‘I have seen the impact that you have had on the local community in the Livingstone area. You have made a huge positive impact on the life of so many. Respect! ‘ -Thore Larsgard

Jane Kaye-Bailey
Founder