Storytelling Through Data: Measuring AEP's Impact in Kafue
By Annabel Mumba
Annabel Mumba is AEP’s Donor Relations Coordinator in Zambia. She is a Scholarship Fund recipient, high school graduate, and also one of our Success Stories.
The African Education Program (AEP) continues its quest to make its operations in Zambia as transparent and accountable as possible – by providing a clear cut picture – regarding where, why and how every dollar is spent and whether it’s contributing to positive and measurable change in the lives of our girls and boys, their families and in our community.
That is why we were excited to launch the Monitoring & Evaluation Department at Amos Youth Centre, our learning and leadership hub in Kafue. Monitoring and evaluation together provide the necessary data to guide strategic planning, to design and implement our programs and projects, and to allocate and re-allocate resources in better ways.
Masmo (l) and Teddy are excited to launch AEP’s M&E Department.
Lumuno Chongo, AEP’s Program Director shared, “For many years, we have collected hard copy data on our students and our program activity and filed it away. We have always had a great concern that this data could potentially be lost. We have also found out that it is important for us to measure our impact and be able to tell our stories with the different data sets that has been collected since the beginning of the organization.”
Why is the Monitoring & Evaluation Department so important?
1. AEP will have a data base record for every girl and boy that enters through the doors of their educational resource center. This is a vital part in sharing the stories of our young leaders as we track them along their educational journey.
2. AEP will be able to track and evaluate our programs and make changes where needed. Through tracking we are also able to monitor the impact we have in the community. For example, we have created surveys to measure the impact of our programs in the lives of the students who attend our educational resource center versus those who do not. This will help us plan better for the future because it will reflect indicators of adjustment and improvement.
3. AEP will be able to track the progress of the students in the Scholarship Program. Most of the girls and boys have entered this program in secondary school and we track them throughout their university/college years and as they enter their professional career track.
Who are the brains behind the Monitoring & Evaluation Department?
Masmo Shiyala and Teddy Sakala, University graduates and alumni of AEP’s Scholarship Program who began their journey at the Amos Youth Centre in the 10th grade. The timing could not have been more perfect for AEP to hire these two young men just as they began their professional careers.
We asked Teddy about his experience at Amos Youth Centre (AYC) and why he chose to come back to work with us, “I have had a wonderful experience with AYC. From the time I was accepted into the program in 2011, AYC played a huge role in my development as a person and a responsible youth. I come from a background of limited means and needless to say, I had financial challenges academically. AYC came through for me and sponsored my education throughout secondary school and university.”
Teddy continued to explain how being a part of AEP’s Sponsorship Program meant that he did not have to worrying about school fees. Education in Zambia is free until the 8th grade when mandatory school fees keep many students from continuing their education.
Teddy attributes his success to AEP’s mentoring program that helped guide his way.
“The support I received means a lot not only to me but to the rest of my family. I say this because coming from a single parent household, I know how hard it was for my mother to pay for my school fees. AEP really lightened the load for my mother.” Teddy’s mother sells floor polish and the little money that she makes is used for buying food and home supplies.
We asked Teddy why he chose this career path, “I have always been fascinated with numbers, patterns and generally how things work. When I completed secondary school, I was determined to study something that would help me understand the world better. My first option was to studying medicine, but unfortunately I did not meet the requirements so I had to adjust my goals a bit. A very good friend who was a senior at the youth center mentored me in the right direction. His name is Nyamazani Tembo.”
AEP’s mentorship program allows students that have graduated high school and college to become mentors to the younger students in the Scholarship Program. Guidance often includes different aspects of life on academics, career choices and peer-to-peer discussions.
“Nyamazani had recently graduated from the University of Zambia where he pursued a degree in Economics with the assistance of AEP sponsorship. He gave me a lot of advice concerning Economics and how it seeks to explain the world in simple yet profound ways. From that moment I was hooked.”
Teddy received a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics with Business Administration from the University of Zambia. He describes the experience of studying Economies as one that has enabled him to learn so much about the world. “My experience with AEP and the Scholarship Program has made it possible for me to be employed at Amos Youth Centre and to be able to do what I love. I am a Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Coordinator and get to work with a wonderful team and family. I’ve always believed that a strong foundation is the basis on which fortified systems and structures stand. Data and information provides just that, a strong foundation. I’m really happy to be able to share AEP’s impact through the numbers too.”
“My hope is that AEP continues providing the support, programs and environment that makes it possible for my fellow youths to thrive and achieve their dreams.”
Joy Mweemba, a Director at the Amos Youth Centre, is happy to have the Monitoring and Evaluation Department at the youth center and describes it as a ‘yardstick’ for its capability to measure impact. “The M&E Department will help us put all the data that the organization has collected in large quantities over the years in one place and this will, in turn, help us locate more data anytime we need it. It will also enhance our planning.”
Just like Teddy, Masmo entered AEP’s Scholarship Program in the 10th grade, but his journey started as early as 8th grade. “I learned about the Amos Youth Centre in 2010 when I was in Grade 8 through my friends who had a positive influence on me academically and in life generally. I spent my 8th and 9th grade at the youth centre studying and taking part in the different programs and activities such as the Music and Dance Club, Debate Club, and the Chess Club. By the end of 9th grade I was given an opportunity to apply the following year for sponsorship. When I was finally accepted, I was the happiest because from then I knew no more unpaid fees at school!”
Masmo is thankful for the academic tutoring that helped him excel in his studies when he attended the youth center.
Masmo’s parents are not in any formal employment, his mother worked as a house helper and his father as bricklayer.
Masmo continued,” Amos Youth Centre has not only helped me but also my parents by paying for my tuition fees and impacting priceless knowledge in me.”
Masmo enjoyed going to the youth center every single day of the week because it felt like more than an after-school program, “The youth center was my home and it still feels like home.” We asked Masmo who motivated him at AYC and he shared, “Mr. Richard Sitali who was one of the student teachers at that time greatly and positively motivated me with his refined mind and unique way of thinking and math solving skills.”
The young mentors at the youth center are shaping the students into future leaders and it shows just how important the mentorship program is. “I never lost the feeling of belonging and welcoming that I felt at the center, even after going to college, Home was always at the center.”
Masmo attributes his early success to the nutrition program and the academic tutoring. “The delicious meals cooked in the AYC kitchen were always the best! Through the academic tutoring and the JETS Club I was able to get very good grades and go to university. The JETS Club helped students learn the three Sciences and Math. JETS stands for Junior Engineers Technicians and Scientists. It was very active during the early years of the youth center.
We asked Masmo how he chose his career path and he shared, “From childhood I have always dreamt of becoming a medical doctor but everything changed when it was time to enroll for university, I missed medical school by three points and opted for Economics because I love numbers and it was a perfect fit for me. I graduated this year with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Demography. Looking back, I am happy that I studied Economics after all. I hope and wish to see younger students who prioritize education as the key to success and develop a great zeal to learning, especially those with disadvantaged backgrounds like me.”
The Monitoring & Evaluation Department is currently working on AEP’s first Impact Report that will be published soon. We will be excited to share not just our impact through numbers, but also what our donors helped us accomplish, especially during this very difficult year of the pandemic.