Blessed Land Foundation

District Development Initiative

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RUFUNSA COMMUNITY ADVANCEMENT INITIATIVE : A STRATEGIC PLAN

Mission Statement

Our mission is to build self-reliant, thriving rural communitiesthrough clean, sustainable water, agriculture,skillstraining, financial inclusion, and early childhood education, beginning in Zambia’s Rufunsa District Zone 12 and expanding acrossthe region. We work to honor God first, through the land and its people, ensuring that growth is holistic, enduring, and blessed.

1.0 Executive Summary

Blessed Land Foundation (BLF) presents this strategic plan for the Rufunsa Community Advancement Initiative, a comprehensive, community-focused project designed to address critical infrastructure and service gaps within Zone 12. Our Development Operational Area (DOA) encompasses the 15 villages of Kakupwe, Mpokota, Mulofwa, Mwamulela, Manchishi, Ponda, mwakapandula, Shapola, Mwachindalo, Pongolani, Shibeleka, Elliot, Mwendakuseka, Nswana West, Nswana East . These communities, representing a population of over 9,600 residents, are characterized by significant geographic isolation, with most essential medical, educational, and commercial services located over ten (10) kilometers away.

Our core strategy is to establish “Malo Odala,” a 30-hectare central service and training campus in Kakupwe village. This campus will serve as the initial hub for a community preschool, a non-urgent health clinic, a multi-purpose community center, and robust training facilities for agriculture, trades, and sustainable mining. In parallel, a large-scale clean water initiative will address the critical lack of safe drinking water throughout the DOA. Through strategic partnerships, targeted programs, and the development of a self- sustaining local economy, this initiative will dramatically improve the quality of life, health, and economic prospects for the residents of Zone 12, with Malo Odala serving as a replicable model for future expansion across the Rufunsa District.

2.0 Problem Statement and Opportunity

The primary challenge facing the communities of Zone 12 is profound geographic isolation. The considerable distance to essential services creates significant barriers to basic human needs. Children struggle to attend school, families lack access to timely healthcare, local producers are cut off from viable markets, and informal sectors like artisan mining operate without safety or legal protections. This is compounded by a widespread lack of access to clean and reliable water sources. This situation presents a significant opportunity for Blessed Land Foundation to implement a targeted, high-impact intervention that fosters community resilience, self-sufficiency, and sustainable growth.

3.0 Strategic Solution: The Malo Odala Campus

The cornerstone of our initiative is the development of the Malo Odala (“Blessed Place”) operational center. This 30-hectare (75 Acre) site in Kakupwe is strategically positioned to serve as the breakthrough project for the entire zone. By centralizing key services, we can effectively alleviate the burden of travel for thousands of residents. Malo Odala will be the pilot site, providing a tangible model and operational blueprint for delivering services and development opportunities to the other 14 communities within our DOA.

4.0 Key Program Initiatives

Our development plan is built upon several interconnected initiatives designed to address the community’s most pressing needs.

4.1 Clean Water Initiative Recognizing that access to clean water is foundational to health and productivity, BLF has launched an ambitious water access program. Our objective is to install four community boreholes in each of the 15 villages within our DOA. Significant progress has already been made, with three boreholes completed in Kakupwe and two in Mpokota. To support the central campus, two commercial-grade boreholes and one residential borehole have been successfully installed at the Malo Odala site. Furthermore, we will drill an additional commercial borehole on land designated for a new Zone 12 Central Market.

4.2 Community Education and Skills Development Our educational strategy is two- pronged, focusing on both foundational learning for children and practical skills training for adults. We are developing plans for open-air school pavilions to provide a preparatory education for early learners, aged five to seven, who are currently unable to make the long journey to the nearest government primary school. The same campus will house separate

facilities for vocational training, beginning with sewing for women and construction skills for men.

4.3 Agricultural Advancement Program To enhance food security and create economic opportunity, our plan includes the development of a minimum of three hectares of land at Malo Odala for agricultural training. This program will instruct villagers in advanced techniques to significantly increase crop yields and will focus on diversifying from traditional maize to higher-value crops. The program will employ a “train the trainer methodology and a sustainable revenue model where students retain 60% of their harvest and 40% is reinvested into the program.

4.4 Health and Wellness Services We are designing a non-urgent clinic at the Malo Odala campus to provide local residents with reliable access to basic medical care and essential medications. Beyond treatment, the clinic will serve as a vital community health resource, actively educating residents on preventative care topics such as family planning and malaria prevention.

4.5 Community Engagement and Economic Empowerment A central pavilion will serve as a Community Center for meetings, information dissemination, and informal markets. To directly stimulate economic independence, BLF has implemented a Women’s Empowerment Cooperative, which has successfully trained 60 women in financial literacy and entrepreneurship, providing them with micro-loans for startup capital. Crowning our economic vision is the plan for a Zone 12 Central Market to catalyze a self-sustaining local economy. We have ongoing initiatives to provide bicycles to aspiring students to shorten their commute to school as well a clothing distribution program to help our early learners have appropriate clothes to wear to Blessed Land Academy (4.7).

4.6 Community Cooperative Development Informal gold mining in Zambia poses serious environmental and safety risks, endangering lives and local ecosystems through unregulated practices and the use of harmful substances like mercury. Despite these challenges, these miners play a vital role in their local economies. We are working to support the transition of informal mining activities into organized, legal cooperatives that meet national standards. Through training, community organizing, and preparation for Artisan Mining Rights Licensing, we help miners adopt safer, more sustainable methods—protecting both people and the environment.

4.7 Blessed Land Academy Blessed Land Academy currently serves 40 preschool students, ages 5–7, providing a strong educational, moral, and spiritual foundation that prepares them to excel in government primary schools and become future community leaders. Our curriculum integrates early literacy, numeracy, and social development within a nurturing, structured environment rooted in Christian values.

With a strategic plan to expand access to 300 students from across Zone 12—approximately 20 children from each village—we will construct seven new school buildings to accommodate growth while maintaining an intimate, high-quality learning atmosphere. Each facility will be designed to support modern early childhood education in a safe, culturally respectful setting.

To ensure accessibility for all enrolled children, we are developing a reliable transportation strategy that includes dedicated routes and vehicles to safely pick up and deliver students from their villages to the Malo Odala campus. This initiative reaffirms our commitment to making exceptional early education available to every family in Zone 12, removing geographic and economic barriers to learning.

5.0 Partnership and Collaboration Strategy

This vision is being realized through deep community partnerships. Blessed Land Foundation is working in close collaboration with the people of Mpokota through two newly formed multi-functional cooperatives, titled BLEMPO Multipurpose Cooperative and Mapalo Mining Co-operative Society, a Woman’s Mining Cooperative. This joint entity provides the structural and economic capacity required to successfully develop the Malo Odala site and its associated programs. To ensure full alignment and support, BLF has actively engaged all civic stakeholders in the planning process, including the Ward Area Counselor and the Rufunsa District Commissioner, securing their agreement and cooperation.

6.0 Long-Term Vision and Replicability

The Malo Odala campus and its programs are conceived as a comprehensive and replicable model for holistic rural development. Our integrated development model centers on our core pillars of clean water access, education, agricultural advancement, healthcare, and community-led economic empowerment. Each of these interconnected initiatives is intentionally designed for replication, creating a powerful blueprint for establishing community self-sufficiency and environmental responsibility.

Our expansion strategy consists of two distinct phases. Phase One will concentrate exclusively on perfecting the integrated development model within Zone 12. Phase Two will focus on expanding this proven framework to all neighboring zones. For both phases, we will actively partner with government bodies and other NGOs to replicate this successful model, aligning our efforts with Zambia’s national sustainable development policies. By organizing and modernizing key local industries, BLF aims to ensure that communities can work safely, profitably, and sustainably protecting both their livelihoods and the land for future generations.

Blessed Land Foundation Empowering Communities, Preserving Creation