15 years of Kiuma
“Miaka 15 KIUMA” – 15 years of KIUMA
The 15-year anniversary of the KIUMA Project in September 2011 was definitely a reason for celebration in South Tanzania. And this anniversary party was not only attended by staff working on the project, pupils and trainees; in fact, apart from wortundtat founder Dr. Heinz-Horst Deichmann, Klaus-Peter Brandes, the German Ambassador to Tanzania, his wife Ursula and numerous representatives from politics and society in the region also joined in the celebrations.
In particular the participation of the latter, the sultans and the other leaders of the Wayao, as the local tribe is called, was of particular significance. As their initial hostile attitude towards KIUMA has undergone a pivotal transformation over the past 15 years, the project is now very well received by the population: today, it has become an integral part of the region. And even better: in the meantime, the regional leaders even encourage the population to get involved in the project. They ask them to become interested in education and to do their part to ensure that South Tanzania slowly but surely closes the development gap with the rest of the country.
An event of far-reaching significance took place immediately before the anniversary celebrations: about 600 delegates held a conference in the KIUMA grounds. They came from the five districts of central South Tanzania: Tunduru, Namtumbo, Nachingwea, Liwale and Nanyumbu. For two days, they held joint discussions on the causes of the poverty and the backwardness of the people living in these five districts and how they could be dealt with successfully. At the end of the conference, they read a joint declaration, which gives rise to the hope that the development of the future will be gaining even more impetus in future.
If you are interested in seeing some moving images about our project in South Tanzania please send an email to info@wortundtat.de with your postal address. We send you the DVD “15 years of KIUMA” free of charge. You can watch some excerpts from the film on our YouTube channel.