Two years after the 2019 launch of the FutureLife-Now! programme in Lesotho, the time had arrived for a formal reflection. Produced at the end of 2021, the aim of the reports from all 10 outreach schools was to reflect on the objectives that the FutureLife-Now! programme had met in relation to its goal of reducing new HIV infections and increasing adherence to ART amongst youth in the SADC Region.

The reports from all ten outreach schools stated that through the availability of e-platforms in schools (laptops, screens and projectors) learners have become acquainted with different virtual platforms such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet, which were mostly used for interschool webinar dialogues in order to discuss an array of topics.

“Students showed confidence and learned a lot from their counterparts,” said Victoria Kente, principal of St Saviours High School. “This sparked excitement amongst learners and later, they all wanted to be part of the discussions.”

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“As a young man I commit to never laugh at any of the girls when they have problems but instead to help them.”

“As a young man I commit never to disrespect old people and girls.”

These are just two examples of the pledges made by the male learners at Matholeng High School in Lesotho on 18 and 19 September, 2021, at the conclusion of a boys’ vulnerability dialogue, organized by FutureLife-Now!, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Training.

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The COVID-19 pandemic presented a host of challenges to Lesotho’s schooling, including its FutureLife-Now! programme, which depends on schools as entry points to reach and support young people.

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In 2020 countries around the world grappled with whether to open schools and how to open them safely in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. After Lesotho’s lockdown was over, the question of school re-opening was not as simple as setting a date and picking up from where things left off. The path to reopening schools would take planning, preparation, and commitment.

Many learners and teachers were faced with different challenges as a result of lockdown-related school closures.

Thato Tlalinyane, a learner from Mampota High School explained: “Many young girls got pregnant and were not able to go back to school. Many parents lost their jobs, and some students could not go back to school because now their parents were not able to pay their school fees when schools reopened.”

Thato added that she had to rely on self-discipline when facing the situation she found herself in as a result of school disruptions. “I learned that as students, we have to keep doing our schoolwork, even when the situation does not allow us to go to school.”

Mosiua Maboee (22) a learner at Matholeng High School, agreed. “I learned that I still have to continue doing my schoolwork – even if just for two hours a day.”

In Lesotho, across all 10 FutureLife-Now! schools, educators and learners participated in different FutureLife-Now! programmes. One such programme was the COVID-19 emergency response that included capacity building training sessions.

FutureLife-Now! empowered young people and educators to become COVID-19 leaders in order to protect themselves and others. This was one of the strategies used to help flatten the spread of the pandemic.

In follow-up interviews with learners and teachers, it was evident that the training had had a profound and positive impact. Sefora Daemane, (19), a learner at Matholeng High School, participated in the FutureLife-Now! COVID-19 training sessions and said that they were of enormous benefit. “We were taught about COVID-19, learned how we could take care of ourselves and others, how to use our masks correctly, and how to wash our hands properly.”

Lebohang Sefuthi, an educator from Matsepe High School said, “After participating in FutureLife- Now! COVID-19 educator training, I believe I will help a lot by educating others around me and in the community, and stop the spread of false information going around about the pandemic and the vaccine.”

There is hope within the gloom, according to some teachers who say that perhaps this is a moment to try to reimagine education in Lesotho, where every child learns the skills, he/she needs to succeed in life and reach his or her full potential.

“We have to be flexible as much as possible, and challenge our conventional learning and teaching methods,” said Sefuthi. “In as much as we want to interact physically with our leaners, we have to appreciate the importance of technology to ensure teaching and learning still continues amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and other pandemics that might come in the future. Can we seize the opportunity that COVID-19 presents in terms of better learning? I hope so.”

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“March 2020 will forever be known as the time all the world’s schools closed their doors.” These were the words of Lesotho Deputy Minister of Education, the Honorable ‘Mamookho Phiri, at a handover ceremony of COVID-19 equipment and hygiene support on October 16 this year.

The handover, which took place at Thetsane High School, one of Lesotho’s 10 FutureLife-Now! pilot schools was made possible through COVID-19 emergency funding from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). It was facilitated by MIET AFRICA, in partnership with Global Hope Mobilization (GLOHOMO) and the Lesotho ministries of Education and Health.

Because of COVID-19 regulations, the handover attendees were limited to school principals, funders and ministerial representatives.

Equipment included face masks, face shields, thermal thermometers, soap, water tanks, and beds. This equipment was identified through a rapid needs assessment, undertaken by GLOHOMO in all FutureLife-Now! schools. According to Deputy Minister Phiri, the assessment report highlighted that key challenges facing schools relate to handwashing, enforcing social-distancing and accessing personal protective equipment.

“The report reflected that the pandemic has shown to us that WASH facilities are inadequate in many schools,” she added.

Over the past few months, schools in Lesotho have reopened and the equipment has been delivered to the FutureLife-Now! schools and adjacent health centers and clinics. This will contribute to the health and safety of all returning learners.

According to Rantsane Kuleile, FutureLife-Now! Country Manager in Lesotho, delivery of COVID-19 equipment and hygiene support “put schools in a position to ensure the safety of our children against this pandemic”.

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During the FutureLife-Now! baseline survey that was conducted in the pilot schools in Lesotho, a scan of their infrastructure showed that all the schools were in dire need of improvement to their water, sanitation and hygiene facilities. For example, St. Barnabas High, a school with an enrolment of 670 learners, 21 teachers and 19 non-academic staff, has, for the last 18 years, been negatively affected by the shortage of water and in recent years has had no running water at all.

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