The Lizauli Spelling Bee in the Zambezi Region is growing in both participation and ambition.

Now in its fourth year, the competition brought together learners from 11 schools, giving them an opportunity to sharpen their spelling and literacy skills, while building confidence and gaining exposure.

What started as a small spelling competition is gradually gaining momentum, with organisers attributing the increase in participating schools to growing interest in literacy development.

Lizauli Combined School teacher Mubita Mutelo says several schools have shown interest in the competition, but distance remains a challenge.

"A number of schools were few when we started. In some schools, you could see that they paid, but when it came to turning up, they didn't. So those were some of the challenges we had. We would like to see this event becoming a very big event. It started in Sibbinda, and I would like to see it growing from the circuit level to the regional level and from regional to, at least, the national level."

Sophia Kandeya, a teacher at Greater Achievers Academy, says this is their second year participating in the competition, and she has noticed significant improvement among learners at the host school.

"I'm seeing that this year a lot of kids are more confident than last year. I've also seen that the words are no longer as easy as they were last year. You can see that some of them are still struggling, maybe because the literacy rate is still a bit low. But I think with the help of phonics sounds when we are training them, more practice, more reading, and speaking English most of the time - not only when they are competing - they can improve."

For returning learner Robin Neta, the competition is also providing an opportunity to build confidence and broaden their experiences.

"I've been competing here at Lizauli Combined since last year. It has been an amazing experience because I get to build my confidence and experience things that other people can't experience. It's a great privilege to be here because it opens my mind and makes me think outside the box."

For first-time participants, Blessing Chizimbo of Mbambazi Primary School, the competition brings both excitement and the challenge of overcoming stage fright.

"I was nervous, and my teacher told me to be strong. She told me that she knew I was strong and confident. Then she asked me if I knew the word, and I said yes. I spelt the word, and I felt very, very proud of myself. I was very excited when I saw Mudumu National Park, and I also saw some animals. It was very fun. I love seeing things like that."