The Chipole vocational training centre is an educational institution that offers quality, affordable or free vocational education to underprivileged young people, including orphans, children with disabilities, young people with HIV/AIDS and young people who have completed primary school but do not have the means to pursue further education. The training centre is located in the Songea rural district in the southern highlands of Tanzania. The population there, lives from agriculture, growing crops and keeping livestock. The target group of the training centre is the rural youth of the Songea rural district. The training centre was set up step by step by the local population themselves with volunteer work.

The training centre initially provided only informal vocational training and gradually more formal, government-recognized vocational training. For full government recognition, the students also had to learn ICT skills. With financial assistance from the Van Doorn Foundation, the school purchased computers and other related facilities in 2020 and computer lessons could be given from the 2020-2021 school year. The training centre subsequently received full recognition in 2021, which made it possible for students that completed training at Chipole vocational training centre, if desired, to continue studies in higher professional education.

The official recognition of the training centre has increased the training centre’s popularity and increased enrolment. To meet this additional demand for vocational training, additional machines and tools for practical training must be purchased. The Van Doorn Foundation wants to help the school to purchase these additional machines and tools.

The Chipole vocational training centre was founded in 1991 by Sisters of the Benedictine Order. The training centre was registered in 2012 and recognized (subject to conditions) in 2019. The training centre had to make the commitment to add computer skills to the curriculum and to provide the necessary lessons. The training centre offers three-year courses in tailoring, carpentry, plumbing, car mechanics and electrical installations and welding. The school has approximately 140 students and has eight classrooms, two dormitories and four teachers’ quarters. Two additional classrooms are under construction.

The goal of this project is that, after purchasing additional learning materials for the courses, the training centre can provide vocational training to more young people and improve the quality of these vocational courses in the following ways:

• More learning space will be available, following the construction of additional classrooms by the church community.
• Students will gain experience in working with modern workshop tools and equipment,
• Practical training will become more efficient and effective due to the better ratio between tools and student, with at least 1 tool per student (currently 1 in 10), so that waiting times caused by the limited availability of tools are avoided. The students now sometimes waste the whole day because other students use the tools.
• The additional classrooms and additional learning resources also make it possible to admit more registrations from an average of 25 students per course to 30 students per course.

The project is important because it aims to train highly qualified craftsmen in trades that are in demand in the current labour market.

The organization has classrooms, workshops, dormitories, and accommodation for teachers. The church community is currently building two additional classrooms and making the necessary food available to the students and teachers. In addition, the church community makes funds available for the maintenance of buildings and equipment. Through the contribution of the church community, the school tries to keep tuition fees as minimal as possible. On average, €150 is charged per course. For the three-year course, this is approximately €5 per student per month.

The intended practice-oriented training courses must enable students to create workpieces, deliver products that can be sold, and generate the necessary income for the centre to be able to pay for the course materials itself.

The church community finances the construction of two additional classrooms and part of the running costs of Chipole vocational training centre. The local government provides wood from which the students of the training centre make school furniture, and the local community ensures the transport of machines and tools from suppliers to the training centre. The Chipole vocational training centre therefore only requests financial support for the purchase of the necessary machines and tools for the various courses.

Van Doorn Foundation is looking for sponsors for the €5,000 needed for this!