Areas of Focus: Water, sanitation and hygiene, Community economic development
This is a food security project. The funds will be used to establish a food garden in a community where unemployment is high and food security is a very real problem. The garden will have the capacity to produce a crop that will provide food for 6 families. It will also be able to produce a cash crop which will provide an income for the families that maintain the garden. Abalimi Bezekhaya (Abalimi) will be the cooperating organization. They are highly skilled in establishment and maintenance of food gardens, and have a marketing and distribution division that will purchase the surplus crop. Abalimi will pay the gardeners, and distribute the crop to the end customer. 10% of the crop will be distributed to members of the community who are in need of food. The project is expected to take 6 months to complete from the time they move on sight.
Abalimi provides a very rigorous training program. Only applicants who have successfully completed this training will be accepted as gardeners. These gardeners, with ongoing support from Abalimi, are responsible for maintaining and operating the garden. Abalimi has field workers who will keep contact with the gardeners and give them the advise and support they need. Abalimi will safeguard and maintain the major equipment. They also run garden centers that will provide the gardening inputs and ongoing training needed. Abalimi will carry the cost of this support and have a good funding program in place for this.
The host club will act as project managers for the project. Abalimi would act as main contractor for the garden because of their vast experience. Rotarians will spend time on site during construction to ensure that the project runs on time and within budget. Rotarians will also pay regular visits to the sight to monitor the sustainability which Abalimi have undertaken to ensure. Our Rotarians will also be involved in the Harvest of Hope organization through which surplus vegetables are sold. They are taking steps to involve their Interact Clubs and their schools to act as agents. Photographs and progress reports will be sent to the Clubs of the International Partners who will continuously assess the performance of the project. The international partners will conduct sight inspections as frequently as practical when overseas Rotarian visit South Africa
