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Flora Fadzai Sibanda, Chronicle Reporter
AFTER over three decades, a Bulawayo woman’s dream to build a school has become a reality and she has since named the learning institution in Emganwini suburb after her late great-grandmother who rooted for her all those years ago.

Ms Sifelani Dube (43), is the proud owner of Ndazi Primary School which has since started enrolling learners.

She said growing up she always wanted to own a school and an orphanage and she is happy now that her dream of having a school has finally come true.

It was easy naming the school as the project was inspired by her late great grandmother, Ndazi who used to cheer her on when telling her about her plans to one day own a school.

The establishment of the school dovetails with Government’s policy that support investment models that facilitate increased private sector participation in the education sector as it realises that it cannot go it alone in the delivery of effective quality education.

Ms Dube’s journey that saw her starting to construct the school two years ago, saw her first running bottle stores and a service station, Bob’s along the Bulawayo-Beitbridge Highway, just after the National University of Science and Technology.

But the businesswoman’s biggest catch is the school which is located in Emganwini that started enrolling learners last year, two years after construction started, as its birth emanates from a childhood dream.

At the moment the school has learners from grades one to four.

“l have built one block with three classrooms that is currently catering for the 47 learners and l have already started building another block so that when a new batch comes next year, l will have space for the children in my classes.

However, l am in need of donors or sponsors who might want to partner so that l can build the remaining blocks as fast as l can,” she said.

Ms Dube said she started by selling indigenous fruit, umnyi, then bought a machine that she used to make blankets.

This gave rise to a brickmaking business in Nketa.

Ms Dube said after a while she started buying residential stands mostly in Emganwini and Pumula South, then build homes before reselling them.

She said she did this for nearly three years until she managed to buy stands where she built a garage and four bottle stores

“That is where l got money to buy my bottle store stands and a garage stand. I built Bob’s garage and four other bottle stores using that money,” said the businesswoman.

Ms Dube lives at her school in Emganwini and she says this is a way of guarding the school and keeping it safe from thieves and burglars.

“It got to a point where l realised l had to get a school or at least an orphanage as l love working with children, that is when l bought this land and approached the city council to build a school here. I also chose Emganwini after realising it had a few schools  and how long it took some children to get to school,” she said.

The school’s headmaster Mrs Grace Muteletwa said most learners are from Emganwini and a few others come from as far as Pumula South.

“When we first started enrolling learners last year we decided to try and close the gap that was caused by Covid-19.

Because we do not have large classes, it makes everything easy because we are able to concentrate on each child and fill every gap,” said Mrs Muteletwa.

A resident who lives near the school Mr Everton Ngulube said he was impressed as the school has facilities to even cater for children living with disabilities.

He said Ndazi Primary School is making it easy for residents around the school because there are a few schools in the suburb.

“By having a school around here things are now easy for most residents,” said Mr Ngulube.–@flora_sibanda