Meet Our Newest Cluster In Zambia

NASILELE SINYAMBO initiated the Monze Cluster in Zambia. Earlier this year, he travelled 500 kilometres to Kaoma in Western Province and began a conversation about the Arukah Network approach to community development. By May, that conversation had grown into the Western Cluster. In this blog, Nasilele shares how the Cluster started and what it hopes to achieve.

You live quite far from Western Province but helped start the Cluster there. Tell us about that journey.

You’re right. Although I currently live in Chisekesi, in Monze District, I trace my roots to Kalabo District in Western Province. The idea of starting a Cluster there came from seeing what we have already achieved as the Monze Cluster in Southern Province using the Arukah Network model. Based on that experience, I wanted to share the Arukah approach with the people of Western Province, where I come from.

In March this year, I visited Kaoma District and spoke with a fellow community leader and family friend, Patrick Sitwala, about Arukah's approach to community development. We talked about how it could help not only the people of Kaoma but also other parts of the province. That conversation was the starting point for the Western Cluster. We went on to discuss how other people who want a better Kaoma, and a better province as a whole, could come on board. I felt that Patrick, who lives there, was the right person to mobilise people and start the Cluster. The plan is for Kaoma to be the starting point for the Western Cluster before we reach out to other parts of the province.

Tell us more about the Western Cluster.

The Western Cluster is based in Kaoma township, about 400 kilometres west of the capital, Lusaka. We called it the Western Cluster because we intend to bring much-needed development to the entire province using the Arukah model. The Western Province is the poorest of Zambia’s 10 provinces in terms of national development. Many people here feel that the province’s historical position as Barotseland has left it with fewer of the roads and social amenities that other parts of the country enjoy. Geographically, the province is mostly covered by Kalahari sands, which makes it very difficult to move goods and services to and from many places because there are no proper roads.

The Cluster consists of more than 10 groups, each averaging 15 to 20 members. This brings the total membership to over 150, with others wanting to join. We felt that working together would be easier than having individual groups work in isolation.

The Cluster officially launched in May this year, when Robins Odiyo from the Support Team visited us. During his visit, more than 70 people were trained in Transformational Cluster Leadership skills. Many of the cluster leaders are now putting those skills, that knowledge and their services to work for the wellbeing of the community. To operate officially, the Cluster has registered with the local authority, Kaoma Town Council, and opened a bank account. We believe there is still much more to achieve as we bring the Arukah model of development to all the areas where the Western Cluster operates.

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  Some members during the Leadership training

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What do you like about Kaoma?

Kaoma is an agricultural region and the home of timber production in the province. It is also the food basket of Western Province, producing maize and other crops such as cassava, groundnuts, millet and sweet potatoes. This is because the soils there are more suitable for farming than in most parts of the province. Many people also earn a living from timber logging and from growing tobacco as a cash crop.

And what challenges does the area face?

The main problem in Kaoma, as in most of Western Province, is the poor road network. It makes it hard to link remote areas to the main road, to move goods and people to markets, and to reach services in the townships, such as banking.

Water is another challenge. Unlike most of the province, Kaoma has no natural surface water such as rivers or streams, so people depend on groundwater, which has to be reached by drilling. Hiring a drilling machine is very expensive for an ordinary person, but if groups work together as a team, it becomes much easier to achieve a big and lasting impact.

What is the main goal of the Cluster?

Our main goal is a community that is better coordinated and organised in solving its own challenges, where a single group working in isolation would take a long time or achieve little. The Western Cluster also aims to open sub-clusters in other parts of Western Province to help localise its work. Currently, we have more than 10 groups in Kaoma District.

What does the Cluster hope to achieve in the coming months?

We have put a number of activities into action around our core objectives.

• Savings and credit scheme: We have already started a scheme that gives cluster members and local people a chance to manage family or business finances in a more sustainable way than other methods.

• Community projects: We are working with the local authority and other community stakeholders to find ways to improve water access and road connectivity in the area, including spearheading the construction of rural feeder roads.

• Life skills training: We offer workshops and seminars on health matters and livelihood skills to strengthen individual livelihoods and improve health and wellbeing.

  
  

Thank you for the wonderful work, Nasilele. We wish the Western Cluster all the best!

Learn more about Nasilele and his own Cluster here.