The Tchapa School

It was a big surprise when my physical therapist, whom I told about my trip to Malawi the day after next while lying on the massage table, pressed a few bills into my hand as I was leaving. In the village, it was said that Coretta could no longer work on the board because her…

Why are we doing this? A project involving schools and so on? Begging and pleading for support and putting up with the sometimes unspeakable bureaucracy of the funding institutions? We are doing this because the local people are very clear in their message: they know that they lack education, and they want their children to…

In Chiuno Village, where there is no running water or electricity, dealing with legal forms is also a new challenge. The community-based organization corresponds to a non-profit association in Germany at the municipal level. Here, as there, the members and their boards are subject to a set of rules based on legal requirements. The social…

The preparation and drilling were a major event. Not only because they marked the actual start of the project, but also because of the question of whether we would find enough water to supply the property and its buildings. And finally, there was the question of where we would find the most water, because that…

The workshop is outdoors and only partially covered. Sawing and drilling are done with a hand drill. There is no electricity. The only drill bit is 10 mm thick and already quite blunt. It is used for pre-drilling and then doweled with a wooden dowel. There are only a few screws, so the wood is…

02 July 2018 I’ve just returned from the 4th vaccination appointment. One important part of the preparation is now complete. And soon it will finally begin. It’s obvious why Germany couldn’t win the Football World Cup—after all, the Senior Expert Service in Bonn had already booked our flight for the day of the final… 17…