I have set up this page so that we can club together to sponsor Onijah Zani through university, to study a Bachelor of Aeronautical Engineering at The Copperbelt University in Zambia.

Onijah is a bright spark but a lack of income and financial support is getting in the way. Getting this degree would alter the course of his life, setting him up with a profession and career. Zambia is one of the poorest countries in the world and needs its young people to get an education and flourish. Let’s make this possible for Onijah!

Onijah is ambitious, bright and totally obsessed with areoplanes. His dream is to become an aviation engineer but he is living in poverty in Chainda, a compound in Lusaka - Zambia, and has no way to fund himself through university.

Onijah’s father was a musician in the Zambian Air Force. When he retired he used his pension to buy a plot of land and to build a house for the family to live in. Unknown to him, the land was sold to him illegally. The land was taken away without compensation and the family home was demolished. Money that could have gone towards education instead goes to paying rent to landlords.

Since he was a kid, Onijah has been teaching himself how to build life-like model planes out of discarded aluminium cans and cardboard. He sells these in markets to make some cash. He also teaches his skills to others as he wants to help empower people to work their way out of poverty while helping the environment by up-cycling unwanted materials. You can check out his blog at: onijahzani.wordpress.com

The five-year course (University fees plus accommodation) will cost a total of: 165,000 ZMW // $16,005 // £11,847

Thank you to everyone who has donated already! If you'd like to know the cost breakdown or any more information, you can contact me using the button above.