Swaziland

Partners:

In 2007 we established a connection with a school in Swaziland through a parent who knew a Peace Corps Volunteer there. Classes '07-'20 participated in our partnership with a school in Swaziland. Muir students sent letters and books to the children. Their headmaster wrote the following:

"We have an enrollment of approximately 300 children. School is not free in Swaziland . Enrollment and book fees increase with each grade level. Many Swazi families, especially those in the rural areas do not make enough money to pay school fees for all of their children. As a result, many children do not go to school past grade 5. Others spend time in and out of school, depending on whether their family has enough money for school fees that year. This results in many children being much older than their peers in the same grade. It can be humiliating and hard for these kids, so oftentimes they simply drop out of school altogether.

HIV and AIDS are devastating Swaziland . Because the disease affects many people in the prime of their lives, the breadwinners in families are decreasing. This leaves many children living in a family with no income, or worse, with no parents at all. In some cases, grandparents or other relatives take in orphaned children. In other cases, children grow up on their own, making ends meet the best they can. This usually means dropping out of school to tend to the family fields or look for odd jobs to support their young siblings."

Find photos and addresses of the school in the library. This will be a continuing connection.

Links: Peace Corps