Mukupa Writes

By Linda Mupemo 13th October, 2020. Writing clinic with the Milenge Secondary School Press and Anti-AIDS club members. Milenge District AIDS Coordination Advisor Fanny Gondwe talks AIDS. Their take home. 24th October, 2020. Presentation of prizes to the winners of the writing competition. L-R Yours truly ;-), Winner of the writing competition Patricia Besa, Runner up Blessed Nakaonga and Fanny Gondwe.

By Linda Mupemo Tears of Joy! St. Therese Girls' School Head Teacher Sr. Hillary Mupemo hands over theee envelope to Theresa.  As secondary schools countrywide wind up on the 2020 academic year, it means one thing for my former institution - Honour's day. Most pupils at St. Therese Girls' Secondary School look forward to this memorable event. It is the day grade 12 pupils officially bid farewell to secondary school life as they have their graduation ceremony.  Additionally, outstanding pupils are given various awards for their intellectual and creative prowess. Honour's day is annually held on 1st October. However, this year, the event was postponed due to the disruption in the school calendar resulting from the outbreak of COVID-19. On 28th November, 2020, the pupils finally received their much anticipated awards. If you have been following me for sometime now, you know that this is the third time I am giving the Linda Mupemo award. If you are new here, her

By Linda Mupemo Imagine losing both of your parents at a tender age. Imagine being ill-treated because of a health condition you have no control over. Imagine being born with a deadly pandemic. Imagine living with AIDS.  These are some of the heart wrenching situations some adolescents have been subjected to because they contracted HIV from their mothers.  As has been our practice, my colleague Milenge District AIDS Coordination Advisor Fanny Gondwe and I organised an essay writing competition for Press and Anti-AIDS clubs members across the district. We give them writing tasks about topical issues that have impact on their lives. The initiative is aimed at improving their writing skills and creating awareness about issues such as Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights, child abuse and AIDS. This time around, we asked them to write about how AIDS has affected adolescents in their community. From all the entries we received from various schools, one issue that came out prominently is