Building a house for teacher to improve leaners performance

About this Project

Arise Youth Organization will partner with the community to construct a 3-bedroom teacher’s house at Mandrade full primary school in Mandrade village, Traditional authority Ndakwera in Chikwawa district. The school has a total of 12 teachers with only 4 teachers’ houses.The majority of teachers commute at least 7 kilometers (km) each way to work, which is challenging in the wet season. This project will allow a female teacher to be accommodated at the school who is going to help the female students with their studies and also some extracurricular activities to help improve their performance.

Arise Youth Organization has partnered with Mandrade Community to construct a 3 - bedroom teacher’s house at Mandrade Full Primary School in Mandrade village, Traditional Authority Ndakwera in Chikwawa district. The house project which started on 5th November 2022, is at roofing stage and about 70% completed. The community has also honored their contribution by mobilizing bricks, sand, water and unskilled labor towards the construction of the house. This project is set to reduce the distance covered by teacher’s at the school, to improve teacher-student contact time, thereby improving students' performance.

A house that keeps teachers in the village

In Mandrade Village, Malawi, a community built more than a house — they built a foundation for better education. With a $6,565 grant from World Connect, a fully serviced three-bedroom home was completed in November 2023 and is now occupied by the school's deputy headteacher, directly benefiting over 120 learners and touching the lives of approximately 5,000 community members.

Having a teacher living on-site is expected to improve attendance, strengthen the teacher–learner relationship, and gradually raise academic performance. But the impact went beyond the classroom. Over 1,587 community members participated in the project, with around 150 people gaining short-term employment during a period of real economic hardship.

This was not a project done for the community — it was built by it. Locals contributed their own labour and materials alongside the grant, demonstrating deep ownership and pride in what they were creating together.

There were delays along the way, but every major objective was achieved. With the house now occupied and the school more stable than ever, Mandrade Village has laid the groundwork for something lasting — and proven what becomes possible when a community invests in itself.