Timange Dinner Raises Voices and Funds for Situnga Primary School
By Agatha Mali, Communications Officer, Zambia
Children of Situnga Primary School in Senanga District, Western Province, walk to school each day carrying more than books. They carry resilience, courage and a quiet determination to learn, even when learning conditions fail them.
They arrive not knowing whether they will find a desk, a chair, or a roof strong enough to withstand the rains. Yet they do not miss class.
On Thursday, 25 June 2026, World Vision Zambia held a Timange project fundraising dinner. The Timange Legacy Project is a locally driven initiative established by the World Vision Zambia Board of Directors to mobilise Zambians and partners around a shared vision: creating opportunities for children and communities to thrive.
As guests listened, Standard Chartered Bank CEO Mr Sonny Zulu brought the room to a pause with a reflection drawn from years in finance.
“I have spent my career assessing value in numbers, in risk, in long-term returns. But there is something no balance sheet has ever captured: the cost of a child whose potential is left unrealised.”
In Situnga, that cost is lived daily. It is seen in overcrowded classrooms, in textbooks shared among four children, and in lessons interrupted by rainfall leaking through worn roofs. It is felt most deeply by the children facing such challenges.
“There is a child in Senanga carrying something heavier than a worn-out textbook,” Mr Zulu said. “A silent question whether that school was ever built for her.”
Seated among the guests, World Vision Zambia Board Chairperson Mable Mung’omba reflected on what had already begun and what still needed to be done.
“When we visited Situnga, we did not just see a school in need, we saw children determined to learn against all odds,” she shared. “We could not walk away. We had to start.”
World Vision Zambia’s Board of Directors travelled to Senanga and listened to the community. With conviction, they broke ground on a 1x3 classroom block, a visible sign that change was possible.
The work is unfinished. $43,000 remains.
“This is not just about completing a structure,” Mrs Mung’omba added. “It is about completing a promise to these children: that they are seen, that they matter, and that their future is worth investing in.”
She added: “As leaders, we cannot stand at a distance; we must step forward. For every day we delay, a child continues to learn in conditions that limit their potential.”
By the end of the evening, the message stood clear: this was not only a moment for reflection but a moment for action.
Over K358,900 ($19,711 United States Dollars) was raised through generous pledges from individuals and institutions, alongside a spirited raffle and a lively auction of meaningful items, including paintings created by the children themselves.
Each artwork told a story of hope, resilience and dreams for a better future, turning the evening into an act of giving and a shared expression of connection between guests and the children of Situnga.