Summary of project status and achievements:
The libraries have all been running very well. The new nursery class in Block F has been so successful that the number of child participants increased from 17 to 22 in just three weeks. The PM visited the class several times and the children seem to be excited and receptive to the activity. The PM believes that the class will continue until January, when the FORGE pre-school begins in Block F and absorbs this population of children. The Block F library has also gained a volunteer librarian who has been very helpful. The English classes in C have been stopped due to the cultivation schedule of the adult students. The C librarian has informed the PM that he is ready to restart the class whenever the students become available again. The English classes in G also halted for a couple of weeks, as the G librarian had to travel to Lusaka for resettlement interviews. The Dufatanye staff, however, absorbed these students into their English classes, and the lessons continued. The Project Managers have discussed the consolidation of FORGE English classes in Block G for the future.
The eight boxes of new books were catalogued and distributed to each of the libraries based on recommendations made by each community. Both the librarians and the headmasters were very grateful for the new shipment.
Future activities and projections:
Efforts to inventory and catalogue all of the books in all of the Meheba libraries have begun. The PM is in the midst of entering this information into a computer database that will contain data on every library book in Meheba. Ultimately, a paper copy of this file will be kept in each library so that community members can request books from other Blocks and an inter-library lending program can begin. The librarians believe this to be an important step forward and the cataloguing is moving quickly and efficiently.
Additionally, monitoring and evaluation mechanisms have been implemented in each library. A short test-run was conducted in two of the libraries this month, B and F, and proved successful. Official recording of indicators and statistics is scheduled to begin in each library on October 1st, so the next monthly report should contain the first full record of M&E information.
Indicators and statistics: