Helping hand for rural women’s efforts
THE efforts of rural women – mostly widowed – in various farming activities were recognised by the provincial government at the weekend.
Christmas came early for some female farmers and cooperatives in the O R Tambo district as rural development and agrarian reform MEC Mlibo Qoboshiyane visited Mqanduli armed with agriculture and sewing equipment including, vegetable seeds, gardening implements, industrial sewing machines, poultry and piggery feed.
Nothemba Mdunyelwa, 51, of Upper Ngqwarha in Mqanduli said the products would make a huge difference in her life and that of her six children.
“I have been involved in agriculture since 2013 trying to put food on the table for my children and educate them. One my six children is studying chartered accountancy. I am very grateful.”
She is one of three poultry farmers who received 10 big 50kg bags of feed and 200 one-day-old broiler chicks.
Mdunyela, whose husband died in 2004, runs Siyazama Poultry Projects.
Out of the 33 cooperatives, eight received industrial sowing machines, over lockers, shweshwe fabric, cotton, industrial irons, cutting tables and display racks for their finished products.
Qoboshiyane was impressed with the work the women and their cooperatives were doing despite limited resources.
“It is important that people realise they are their own liberators from poverty and government can assist them in their efforts for it to become a success.
“There are difficulties but it is important that people produce food to sell to the markets. Those who can’t produce, must buy from producers so our province can grow,” Qoboshiyane said.
Nokwakha Pali, 53, of Siyathunga Sewing Cooperative in Nenga village in Mqanduli, said they teamed up to teach each other sewing to make church and school uniforms using hand-operated machines. “We are happy with these industrial machines because previously we couldn’t put embroidery on our clothes and decorate the material we produced because the old Singer machines doesn’t have that function.
“We also need a place to do our business and to teach some unemployed youth sewing so they can earn an income and stay away from taverns and drugs,” Pali said.
She said they had also drafted young women into sewing.
Thirteen vegetable-producing cooperatives from Libode, Port St Johns, Mhlontlo and King Sabata Dalindyebo municipal area received wheelbarrows, spades, forks, hoes, rakes, watering cans, seeds and seedlings.
Seven pig farmers who had called on Qoboshiyane’s office for help to feed their pigs, received 10 40kg bags of pig growth, yellow maize, bran wheat, and feed.
“This will help us improve the condition of our pigs to be good for all markets, including retail markets and help us grow our herd. We started this project to create jobs for some of the unemployed youth so they don’t end up doing crime,” farmer Ntomboxolo Habe said.