KNITTING COMPETITION
The knitting competition started for girls by the same time that the football tournament started for boys. We involved 11 primary schools within Chasato Zone. More than 200 girls were challenge to explore their imagination. The moto was very clear – Be unique.
Every girl that took part of the competition received half yarn of wool. We visited all the 11 schools to not only announce the tournament but also to provide the yarns of wool. Regarding needles, we didn’t have budget to provided it, but let’s never underestimate the improvising power of Malawian girls. No matter what materials they use, from wood sticks to pencils they always find a way to knit.
The rules were very simple. The most creative and well-executed piece of art received a prize. And to incentivize the entrepreneurship spirit, the prize was in form of cash. In this way, they could get self-confidence, designing their own product and afterwards selling it, as a source of income.
To cement the idea, a small workshop was done in the schools – “How to make a Dream Catcher.” was the title. Strings and some local material with a circular shape was what was needed. They had tons of fun playing with colors. Some mixed red with purple, others purple with green. Different designs, different journeys through imagination.
After one month, we went to collect their works. It was a surprise for us, to see so many extraordinary pieces. There was so much talent among the work of these 211 girls, that our task of selecting the winner, was indeed harder. We appealed for the teacher´s opinion, we wanted to be fair and not hurt the feeling of anyone. It is always complicate to award one person when the competition is high. Sometimes we felt compassion with work and dedication of some learners that we bought ourselves the pieces. Everyone wanted to win. They were not even thinking in the finals, they were focus on the moment, being the best of the bests in their school.
The winners of each school, came in the day of the finals of football tournament, to see their pieces exposed. The communities around were curious and impressed by the work developed. And just imagine that some of the students had only 12 years old. This shows that every child can learn to be entrepreneurial, what is needed is to unlock the talent, if given the right guidance and opportunities.
Ruth Mtwemwamwmge from Watereka school didn’t want to believe what was happening. She was called to stand before a crowd of 600 people. Very shy, humble and with not so much words, she accepted the prize of the best designer in Chasato Zone.
Experiences like this can blossom the inner talent of the children. They must trust on themselves and through hands-on and imagination they can gradually develop their skills and so creating new opportunities for their future life. This is what we believe.