Weekly Update

The construction of the classroom block is going on and to date the following has been done :

* the roof trusses are almost ready as they are now making them level.
* skimming of the ground floor has since been completed
* painting of the ground floor has since commenced
* we bought all the paint for the buiding.

What is needed in the next few weeks:

* Window panes.
* Doors, door handles and locks.
* Material for ceiling.
* Floor and wall tiles.
* Electrical fittings, lights, switches and plug sockets.

April updates

The contruction of the classroom block has finally reached its final height going up, and they have reached the roofing level. All the roof trusses needed were delivered to the site and more than half are already on top of the classroom block. By the end of next week, they should be ready for laying the roof tiles.

We also managed to purchase 300 bags of rhinoset out of the required 500 bags for the skimming of all the walls and they have also started to do the skiming this morning (skimming makes the wall smooth before painting).
Plumbing work for the water supply to the toilets has also been started.



Electrical cables are also being installed on the gound floor and the first floor will only be done after the roof trusses are ready.


This week we also bought all the door frames for the toilets and they are busy closing up all the partitions in the toilets and this should be complete by the end of the week.



The orchard and the vegetable garden are all doing quite well and all the plants are really healty. We have also prepared a nursery for Jacaranda trees and we are going to plant them in the next few weeks when the road is ready, if it is not ready we will also wait for the people who are coming from Italy this summer and they can do the tree planting. Those who have been here, they know how the Jacaranda trees bloom ummmmm they are so nice.

Sister Antonietta is in Italy and she is going to stay there for 2 months.

The Oratory children in the Traditional Dance dresses

The Oratory children in the Traditional Dance dresses, they dance and sing quite well.

Maize from Sister Antonietta and the Oratory children.

In the attached foto, some of the children from the Oratory can be seen helping to remove the maize from the maize cobs. All this maize was harvested from the garden in the new school, we have had a very good harvest and those who are coming to Zim you will get the opportunity to eat the taste of the local staple food that is a product of Sister Antonietta and the Oratory children.

Maize is grown by almost all the people in Zimbabwe except for those areas that receive little or no rain ut those areas they do grow drought resistant crops such as rapoko, sorghum and millet which serve the same purpose as maize but richer in nutrients.

April Week 3 Report

The classroom block has finally reached the final height in terms of brick and concrete works. This week we managed to purchase all the concrete roof tiles and yesterday we had the first load of 4,500 and the balance of 4,500 will be coming next week. Out order for the roof trusses is still in production and the company that is manufacturing them says they should be ready and delivered next week.

On the other hand, the ground floor is almost ready for skimming and we have already bought the first consignment of the rhinoset that is used to smoothen the interior walls before painting. In a few weeks, the following material will be required on the site :

* Ceiling boards (for the first floor only).
* Glass bricks (for the walls on the stair case).
* Window panes.

We will however first compare the prices between Zimbabwe and Botswana as many items are now being accessible locally and cheaper than outside since companies are now starting again although there are still some items that are still costing way too much.
The situation was like this; when the situation was bad here, many companies were producing only for export to our neighbouring countries and their products were not available locally as they wanted foreign currency but now the situation is improving.

The quotation for the Administration block is not yet ready and we are still waiting for the contractor.

In the foto:

* the ground floor can be seen with all the window frames in place.
* the inside partitions on the first floor are complete.
* the workers are plastering all the partitions onthe first floor.
* all the windows and door frames on the first floor are in place and the corridor is done.

Administration Block

The plan for the Administration Block and offices for the the school has been approved and we have attached two pdf documents with the plans. The contractor says they are almost done with the classroom block and most of the workers very soon will be having nothing to do as they will remain only with those who will be doing fittings, however they suggested that if possible we can start the project of the offices and the administration block.

The new Orchard

The week has come to an end and there is great progress with the construction of the school. The partitions on the first floor are almost complete as eight classes have already been partitioned, with all the windows and door frames in the passage in their respective positions.

In the pic a worker can be seen painting the final stage in one of the bedrooms in the guest house, they are concurrently working on the classroom block as well as the guest house. The guest house is just left with the finishings especially in the bathrooms they are fitting the curtain rails, toilet paper rolls, soap trays, mirrors and other small fittings.

Next week all the roofing material should be at the site and we are right on time with the contractor as they do not want to be delayed. According to the plan and the set target, the classroom block is scheduled to be complete by the end of July but the contractor says in the venet that all the material is available without delays then they will finish even before the end of June.

At the moment, schools are closed here and all the children are on holiday, some of the oratory children are coming to the site to help Sr Antonietta and Sr Luisa with the following :

* New orchard - there is a portion on the site that has been reserves for fruit trees and to date several fruit trees have been successfully planted and these include; mango, banana, paw paw, guava and many other exotic and wild fruits. In the pic Guava tree in the orchard



Sr Antonietta preparing the orchard ready to plant other trees






This is a tree called Acacia and it is an exotic tree, to date there is a total of 29 trees that have been planted successfully and are growing quite well





One of the oratory children about to plant a wild fruit tree, this tree bears some fruits which are like chewing gums and they are so good.

* New vegetable garden - there is yet another portion within the school complex that has been reserved for vegetables and to date they have green vegetables that are a staple food for Zimbabwe (those who have been to Zimbabwe have had the taste of this green vegetable that is really delicious especially served with meat, so those who have never been here, you can come have the taste of the vegetable). The are also onions, tomatoes, cabbages and other greens.

* Flowers - several flowers and other bushes have been also planted around the school yard and the guest house and they are all colorful.