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Congratulations to Alan Watson on being awarded the Order of Australia
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Written by Katoke
Thursday, 26 January 2012 14:17
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Dr Alan Watson, founder and chairman of The Katoke Trust for Overseas Aid, has been awarded the Order of Australia for service to the international community, in particular the Katoke region of Tanzania, East Africa.
Dr Watson founded the Katoke Trust in 1998 to empower the people of Katoke, a very poor area of Tanzania, on the shores of Lake Victoria. His connection with the area goes back to 1968-1971 when he was a lecturer at Katoke Teachers’ College.
Returning in 1998 he found the people to be desperately poor, but wanting to help themselves; they did not want handouts, they wanted better prices for coffee crops, and education for their children. He speaks the national language, Swahili, and since he set up the Trust has returned twice each year for the past 13 years.
The award recognizes Dr Watson’s work for the Trust, which is dedicated to building healthy, better-educated communities in partnership with local leaders in Tanzania.
As well as health and economic initiatives, the major Trust project for the past six years has been building a secondary school, with 400 students and 10 classrooms.
Dr Watson says: “This award is a recognition and tribute to the many who have worked in the Katoke Trust program, in Australia and Tanzania, to make a difference, to make poverty history in Africa. There are 40 on our Australian sub-committees and working parties and a similar number in Tanzania”.
Please head to the donate page if you'd like to support the work of the Katoke Trust.
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| Last Updated on Thursday, 26 January 2012 14:25 |
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Merry Christmas and thank you for your support in 2011
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Wednesday, 14 December 2011 00:00
| Dear Katoke Co-workers,
We have much cause to rejoice over the work of the Trust this year.
I thank God for you and for the way he has continued to provide our needs for the work. Our two major events, the Tour or Teach and the Annual Dinner aroused great interest and attracted strong support.
The highlight of the year was obviously Samuel Habimana's visit. He charmed all he met and left a powerful impression. What an inspiration! Our long time supporters were reassured we have honourable leadership at Katoke and many new supporters were confident in being added to our lists. Our links to several Sydney schools were extended. As well, quite a number of people have enquired about going to Katoke in various capacities and sponsorships increased most pleasingly.
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| Last Updated on Wednesday, 04 January 2012 13:39 |
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Katoke School Enters the Computer Age
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Sunday, 11 September 2011 13:16
| Katoke-Lweru Secondary School now has a computer laboratory, which will put students in touch with the wider world. The laboratory was opened in July by the Regional Commissioner in Kagera, the Honourable Muhamed Babu.
The laboratory has 25 new computers, printers and a data projector. It connects students in this remote rural school in the Kagera region of Tanzania with international communication and information technology. Staff and students are very excited about using computers, said Dr Alan Watson, chairman of the Katoke Trust. He says knowledge gained through computer use will benefit the whole community, not just students. Computers will be used in all areas of the school curriculum, and encourage learning through software.
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Annual Benefit Dinner a Success
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Sunday, 30 October 2011 20:54
| Thank you to everyone who supported the annual benefit dinner at Tradies on Friday 21 October. The event raised an amazing $28,000 for the work of the Katoke Trust, and the 13 children who were in desperate need received sponsorship.
The highlight of the evening was the address given by the outstanding community leader at Katoke, the Rev Samuel Habimana. He has been the chair of the Medical Dispensary, the co-founder of the Katoke-Lweru Secondary School and the person who has set the standard of honesty and commitment that has enabled the anti-poverty aid programs to flourish. He is a gracious man who recently had a totally atypical and unpredicted recovery from prostate cancer. Samuel speaks five languages and is a good communicator, having been a lecturer in English at Katoke Teachers College for some 30 years.
As a young man Samuel escaped from certain slaughter in Rwanda, and married the girl who helped him do so. His life has been inspirational, and he brought a tear to many an eye as he gave his heartfelt thanks to the people of Australia for what they are doing in the Katoke region.
All money raised at the event will go to the work of the Katoke Trust in Tanzania. |
| Last Updated on Monday, 07 November 2011 20:00 |
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Katoke-Lweru Secondary School Project
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| Without education, there is no hope for children to escape the poverty cycle. In a country where a large proportion of the population do not receive a quality secondary education, it was clear that a secondary school would be meeting a great need in this area.
The Katoke Secondary School opened in April 25, 2009 after three years of planning and one year of building. There are currently 320 students enrolled – 130 each in Forms 2 and 3, and 60 in Form 1. Over 200 of these students are boarders.
Stage 1 of building is now complete with seven major structures, including an administration block, classrooms, computer and science laboratories and teacher housing. Stage 2 of the building program begun in 2010 and includes dormitories for boys and girls, a dining/assembly hall, a Guest House and more classrooms. In 2011 the Computer Lab was opened.
The school is a Lighthouse School with a program for the improvement of education in surrounding schools. Its motto is “Strive for the goal” and a major purpose is to “educate leaders for tomorrow”.
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