The battle to claim the championship for the 34th edition of the French Schools Drama Festival kicked off with regional finals on Saturday, which saw nine secondary schools sailing through to the national final slated for March 9, 2024, in Blantyre.
In the Southern Region, the schools that have made it are Stella Maris, which made a short trip to Zingwangwa and came first, followed by Jacaranda School for Orphans, who are the defending champions, with Zomba Catholic and Providence Girls from Mulanje scooping third and fourth position, respectively.
There was joy from girls from Stella Maris, clad in their green jerseys and white blouses and green skirts, when the judges of Steve Kungala, who is the President of Headmasters in Malawi and author of a French textbook, Beaton Galafa, who is a lecturer at University of Malawi, and his student Alfred Kamwendo announced the results.
Stella Maris has not been successful in recent times in the competition, hence their celebration, according to one of the teachers.
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In the Northern Region, at Katoto Secondary School in Mzuzu, three schools made it to the national final and they are Luwinga Secondary School which came first, with Marymount Girls and Mzuzu Academy claiming second and third position, respectively.
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The Central Region contest took place at Chinsapo Secondary in Lilongwe, with Likuni Boys, which came first and Marist which was second, making it to the national final.
The drama competition, led by Jacaranda Foundation and French Embassy in collaboration with Association of French Teachers in Malawi, is running under the theme ‘La lute contre le vandalism et la violence dans les ecoles’ (The fight against vandalism and violence in schools).
It therefore saw secondary schools staging productions that were against vandalism and violence in schools.
The organisers arrived at the theme having recently witnessed vandalism and violence in schools by students in the country which has led to damage to schools and closures.
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Initially, the three regions were expected to produce two winners each during the regional finals, but the trend changed later following participation.
The Southern Region featured 12 schools with the North having seven schools whereas the Central Region, had six schools.
This meant, the Southern Region with its highest participation, was given four slots with the North and Central getting three and two slots respectively.
The regional contest at Zingwangwa Secondary started in the morning and went all the way to the evening, with students showcasing their creativity in drama and showing their eloquence in French language.
Director of French Studies at Jacaranda Cultural Centre (JCC) and Maison dela France, Poya Chapweteka said they were satisfied with the regional finals in all the regions and that they were now looking forward to the grand finale.
“The schools showed the consequences of vandalism and violence. The plays were good, with improved use of French language,” Chapweteka said.
He hailed Ministry of Education and all French teachers for their support.
JCC Director and French Honorary Consul to Malawi Luc Deschamps said the French Drama competition is a long tradition on their calendar and that the journey in the competition has been exciting this far.
“It is exciting to see beautiful plays done in French. We are looking forward to the best during the national final,” Deschamps said.
Meanwhile, a French writing competition targeting three universities that teach French namely University of Malawi, Domasi College of Education and Mzuzu University has been introduced.
The competition will run under the theme ‘Les jeunes et le chomage’ (The Youth and Unemployment).
