Update - March 2006

As many of you will know I was unfortunatley not able to participate in the trek as my wife broke her pelvis in a car accident - she's now recovering well.

The trek did take place however and most of the rest of the team successfully made the top of Kilimanjaro, although they all found it very hard going.  Meeting the children and teachers from the school was fantastic - they were made to feel very welcome, and saw at first hand the pressing need for our support. 

There is still more to raise to reach the target in order to purchase the school bus which they so deperately need, so please do keep giving!

Many many thanks for your support - it really does make a difference.

Tim

Many thanks for visiting this page, and I do hope you will consider supporting this project. The aim is to help many children in the outskirts of Nairobi slums who cannot get safely to school to have a chance of an education by providing a school bus, and to enable more school places for Kenyan children by building additional classrooms.

This fundraising challenge is being carried out jointly between local Africans in Kabete, Nairobi and a team from the UK.

The 8 day challenge, beginning 22 February 2006, is to climb Uhuru Peak, Kilimanjaro, the highest point of the African continent at 5,895m above sea level. The air is pretty thin up Kilimanjaro and the trek involves tough long days walking so to succeed in reaching the summit is no mean feat. Our approach trail to the summit will follow the less frequented Rongai (Nalemoru) Route that starts at Loitoktok on the Kenyan side. We will then descend via the better known Marangu Route on the Tanzanian side.

The real challenge is to raise GBP40,000 towards a new school bus and classrooms for a school set up by Church Army Africa 10 years ago. More details and background are provided below. I am particularly pleased to be trekking alongside eight of our african brothers - those who will be ensuring the funds are used effectively to improve education for many Nairobi children.

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure and can be completely anonymous too if you wish - just enter Anon when asked for a display name. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Church Army Africa will receive your money (via Church Army) faster and, if you are a UK taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you.

If you wish to support this project please click on SPONSOR ME NOW or PAY ON COMPLETION above to make your donation. For more info and background on the project read on.

Many thanks for your support :-)
Tim Panter

====> MORE DETAILS ABOUT THE PROJECT
(written by Steve Maina who heads up the project in Nairobi)

The school (called the Church Army Academy) is set in a densely populated, generally low-income neighbourhood characterised by slum settlement. It is aimed at providing good education as well as training leaders who will transform the continent of Africa. It now has about 250 students. In 2003 the Kenyan Government introduced free primary education in all public schools. While this gives an opportunity to needy children to get an education, it suffers from crowded classrooms and teachers find that they do not have the capacity to cope with the rapid growth. A typical class in the public school has an average of 60 students per teacher. The quality of education is therefore compromised and the specific needs of the children are not addressed. Church Army Academy offers the same system of education but with an average 16-20 students per teacher. The academy is privately run and therefore does not receive Government funding. However, the academy is able to meet much of its total running costs through the school fees paid in by parents. It is committed to serve low income and poor families, and therefore will not load capital developments on the parents nor borrow money, which would eventually be a load on the families. The rest of the money is raised through generous donations from churches, organisations and individuals. Though the pupils are supposed to pay fees, this is not always the case because some parents are too poor. A benevolence fund named "Kitty for the Needy" assists those who need it. Just GBP225 covers education for one pupil for a year. But more than just education,the academy provides nutritious meals and drinks for every child. For many children, this may be the only nutritious meal they get in a day. Due its position, most children either take public transport or walk to the school. Because of the dense population, the roads are very busy making it dangerous for children to cross the roads along their way. The unemployment rate in Kenya is steadily on the rise resulting in increase of crime and the area is recorded to have one of the highest crime rates in Narobi. The children are exposed to crime as potential victims or are lured into it. If the academy were to provide a school bus for transport these challenges would be addressed. The parents would be assured of their children's safety on the roads, safety from crime and drugs and cheaper transport. The bus would obviously make the school accessible to all students. School transport would be open to students at a discounted rate and for free for those supported by the bursary fund. We propose to get a new 29-seater bus that is fitted with safety belts and a speed governor at a cost of GBP20,370. In addition the remaining funds raised will go towards bulding additional classrooms to help meet the increasing demands for school places. Please support us in getting this bus and helping the children in the city of Nairobi get the education they so badly want.
Steve Maina

Many thanks for your support.
Tim Panter