Kalenshi couple triumphs under free education policy
….after a seven-year wait since dropping out in 2015
Kalenshi couple triumphs under free education policy
….after a seven-year wait since dropping out in 2015
By DAVID KANDUZA
A CHEMBE couple, in Luapula Province, has emotionalised the community by publicly thanking President Hakainde Hichilema for the free education policy that enabled them to finally complete their Grade 12 certificates.
Alfred Kalenshi and his wife, had abandoned their academic dreams in 2015 due to a crippling lack of financial resources.
The heartwarming encounter took place as President Hichilema concluded his comprehensive working tour of the region.
During the presidential wrap-up event in Luapula, the couple managed to share their journey directly with the Head of State.
The Kalenshi couple expressed deep gratitude, noting that without the scrapping of school fees, their certificates would have remained a distant dream.
They emphasised that the policy was not just a political slogan, but a tangible life-changer for vulnerable families.
President Hichilema praised the couple’s resilience and highlighted their success as validation for his administration’s heavy investment in human capital.
He reiterated that the core objective of the free education model was to ensure that poverty never prevents a willing citizen from acquiring knowledge.
The President noted that seeing citizens reclaim their future justifies the governance reforms implemented since taking office.
The Chembe couple’s testimony occurred during a fast-paced continuation of President Hakainde Hichilema’s provincial outreach.
Following a massive two-day tour of eight districts, the Head of State returned to Luapula Province to sweep through the final four districts.
The specific interaction with the Grade 12 graduates happened during a massive community engagement in Chembe District.
Mr Kalenshi and wife, re-entered the school system back in 2018 in Grade 6 at 34 years old.
However, they heavily struggled to support themselves alongside 11 other school-going children and dependents.
The introduction of the free education policy after President Hichilema took office in 2021 alleviated their financial burden.
This allowed them to finish their secondary education in 2025—coinciding with a historic national 75 per cent Grade 12 pass rate.
The President’s overarching mission was to physically visit all 12 districts of Luapula Province to evaluate development goals.
During his community meetings across these districts, President Hichilema pledged localised development projects:
In Lunga District, the President said procurement of two transport barges, communication towers and a new boarding school would be done.
In Chifunabuli District, the President said the funding for local roads, bridges, fisheries, and a district hospital would continue..
Mr Hichilema in Samfya District assured residents of infrastructure deployment to promote local tourism and generate jobs.
In Mansa District, the President’s high-priority road rehabilitation, a future university, and expanding Mansa Airport into an international hub.
He also scalled-up the Social Cash Transfer and ‘Cash for Work’ emergency drought-relief programs across all locations.
The completion of the tour in Mwansabombwe marked the head of State visiting every single district across Zambia’s ten provinces to review local governance ahead of upcoming administrative cycles.
President Hakainde Hichilema’s comprehensive outreach to Luapula Province was structured into a two-phase tour covering all 12 districts.
The initial phase focused heavily on socio-economic restoration, connectivity and social protection programmes, while the second phase targeted structural development, direct citizen engagement and localised infrastructure projects.
During this leg, President Hichilema focused on addressing long-standing connectivity issues, public sector service delivery, and energy security.
In Mansa District, the President ‘s focus centered on infrastructure upgrades.
Mr Hichelema said plans were reviewed to transform Mansa Airport into an international aviation hub to foster trade, alongside municipal road rehabilitation and structural expansion for a future regional university.
In Samfya District, the President targeted investments in tourism infrastructure development along the shores of Lake Bangweulu, aiming to turn local hospitality into a job-creation engine for youth.
In Nchelenge District, Mr Hichelema would evaluate local governance, civil servant housing developments, and the aggressive implementation of the free education policy to eliminate desk deficits.
In Chienge District, the President focused on the expansion of social protection systems, including the scaling up of the Social Cash Transfer and ‘Cash for Work’ emergency drought-relief programmes to aid vulnerable rural households.
In Lunga District, the President centered his tour on resolving deep isolation and geographical barriers.
He pledged to formalise the deployment of two heavy transport barges, construct a new boarding school, and build strategic communication towers.
In Mwense District, the President addressed localised economic stimulation through agriculture, reviewing key transit networks and irrigation potential near the Luapula River valley to reinforce food security.
Mr Hichelema in Kawambwa District, focused on enhancing partnerships with traditional leaders to uplift rural dignities.
This included accelerating the construction of chief palaces and optimising industrial agri-projects like the local sugar estates.
In Chifunabuli District, the President prioritised municipal healthcare and water connectivity, advancing support frameworks for the Chifunabuli District Hospital and rural road upgrades along critical transit corridors.
The second leg wrapped up the provincial tour to ensure no community or district was left behind in national development programmes:
In Chipili District, the President assessed localised infrastructure delivery, monitoring ongoing rural electrification networks and examining schools to ensure proper resource allocation under decentralised funding frameworks.
In Chembe District, the President said the area served as a vital transit and border gateway to Luapula Province and hat he would focus on fast-tracking incomplete civil and district administration offices.
In Mwansabombwe District, Mr Hichelema targeted cultural heritage coordination and evaluating public worker systems.
The President interacted with local traditional leadership to align Sate development goals with local cultural administration
In Milenge District, the area was marked by energetic public interaction, where he used this platform to review the expansion of health services, local bridges, and the real-time impact of the enhanced Constituency Development Fund (CDF) in remote communities.
Ultimately, the completion of this provincial circuit ensured that decentralised funding mechanisms like the CDF were tightly aligned with grass-roots realities, laying down a cohesive framework for Luapula’s socio-economic transformation.
