| | | BACKGROUND | | | The A to Z Trust was set up and registered as a charity in January 2008 because of a long association that the trustees have had with Zimbabwe originating from the twinning arrangement that exists between Aberdeen and Bulawayo. The trustees are regular visitors to Zimbabwe and have seen the rapid decline from a once vibrant and self-sufficient country described as “the breadbasket of Southern Africa” to a destitute and unproductive area blighted by economic and social collapse. The unemployment rate exceeds 80%, life expectancy is now one of the lowest in the world averaging 35 years, disease is rampant and people are starving to death.
The economic collapse has resulted in an almost bankrupt education system devoid of qualified teaching staff and the basics necessary to provide teaching, textbooks and educational necessities which are beyond the financial capability of most families. This state of affairs will create a lost generation of uneducated people whose skills should be available to help rebuild the country when normality returns. Many of the children are either orphans or have been subjected to role reversal in that they are required to care for sick and dying parents or their orphaned siblings; this leaves little time for education and they are denied the physical, emotional and intellectual nurturing that is essential for a rebirth of the country. | | |
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