Rosemary Harris


 
 

Chalula Library Project

 

Spring 2009

 

A lot is happening at The Chalula Library!  We continue to have thousands of visits from both children and adults and we understand that plans for the new water tank are finally underway!
 
In January, librarian Aaron Chomolla traveled to Uganda to attend the Community Libraries Association Workshop in Kampala led by Professor Kate Parry of FAVL, who has herself started numerous libraries in Uganda.  Aaron also visited several village libraries in Uganda to see how they serve their communities.  One of his goals will be to try to raise the profile of the library in the community using methods learned at the meeting.
 
In August, Bruce and I will return to Tanzania and join Professor Parry, Aaron and library coordinator Joseph Biseko for a two day library conference in Lushoto, Tanzania ( a twelve hour bus ride from Mvumi..) Next stop will be Dar es Salaam for a book buying trip to expand the library's collection. Our visit will coincide with the The 6th Pan-African Reading for All Conference and we hope to meet many experts who will help our Tanzanian friends to grow the library and its usefulness to the students and parents of the Mvumi community. And then it's off to Mvumi to visit headmaster Henry Lyandala and all of our friends in the village.
This time we will be joined by two wonderful and energetic volunteers - Holly and Lauren who will spend three weeks volunteering in the library and staying as guests of the village.
 
Tanzania is still one of the poorest countries in the world where the average daily wage is only $2.00 a day when people can find work at all. However, this generation of Tanzanians is much better educated with a rising rate of literacy and that is why supporting  the library is so important. We welcome any help that you can give.
 
Contributions may be sent to:
Chalula Library - Friends Of African Village Libraries
PO Box 90553
San Jose, Ca. 95109
 
Book contributions or magazine subscriptions may be sent directly to the library
Chalula Community Library
Chalula Primary School
PO Box 993
Dodoma, Tanzania
 
Asante sana,
Rosemary and Bruce Harris

 

 

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Rosemary Harris


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