YWCA is a non-profit organization in Namibia and we will start up a new initiative to empower vulnerable women by developing a fruitful, productive garden, full of mighty Moringa trees. The garden will be set up in Windhoek. The project is developed in cooperation with volunteers from the Netherlands.
We are starting up a new initiative to empower women and children in this country by developing a fruitful, productive garden, full of mighty Moringa trees. The garden will be set up in Windhoek.The project was developed in cooperation with volunteers from the Netherlands.
Due to the alarmingly high unemployement rate in Namibia, women are struggling more and more to cope with everyday life. Usually, the women have to earn their living, provide for their families and raise the children. No work means no money and no food. The women are dependent on gifts from other families or from the church, which makes them not self-reliant. Generally speaking, people who are independent and self-reliant have a much better chance to survive and to do well in society.
A gift of a tree is a gift that will last for generations
That is why YWCA is starting up a Mighty Moringa (MM) garden that will hold 100 trees. We have chosen the Moringa tree because of its specific features: it is called a ‘supermarket on a tree’. Moringa is more than a super food: it is a natural energy booster. It is a fast-growing, drought-resistant tree whose seed pods and leaves are used as vegetables. Moreover, the leaves have an impressive range of medicinal uses and are known as an excellent source of nutrition.
In short, the tree provides food and constitutes a commercial resource: two things that can change people’s lives. It can alleviating suffering, people take advantage of its rapid growth and its outstanding nutritional profile. The task of harvesting the leaves is time-consuming because the leaves are very small and difficult to pick. This task will be executed by the women.
Your contribution will be highly appreciated. You can adopt a mighty Moringa tree for yourself, or for a loved one. If you adopt one whole tree – for only 1.500 NAD/ZAR – you will receive a personal eCertificate. You can also decide to adopt together with friends, your children or colleagues. The trees will have to be watered weekly – of course, we can do that for you! You are always welcome to visit your tree in the MM-garden and enjoy a Moringa smoothie in Windhoek, Namibia.
Milestones
Milestone 1 : R22 500
We can hire an expert to do the research for the best spot on the land to put a waterhole. So we know how to set up the garden. We can buy poles and wire to make our own fence. The women can already delete all the stones of the land. We can buy about 15 trees to already start.
Milestone 2 : R150 000
When we reach our dreamgoal we have a garden with 100 Moringa trees, a waterhole plus pump and a fence around the land so no goats can damage the trees. Women can work everyday in the garden to water the trees, to harvest the leaves and the fruit. They will dry the leaves in the dryhouse and to go to the market to sell the leaves and making a little bit of money. The women and families living around the garden have work to do, have food because the leaves are like vegetables and can go to the market. YWCA has the land and already built a dryhouse on it so the next step is to give the land a purpose and use it for the community.
35 YWCA women and young women will directly benefit from the project and approximately 1500 community members and families will benefit from the proceeds of the garden. The 35 women will receive allocations of the produce and the community in the village of Groot Aub will be prioritised of receiving the nutritious food. Only the surplus vegetable will be sold to on the market. The community can buy the vegetables at a discounted and affordable price. The profits made from the sale of the vegetables will be re-invested and used to increase the nummer of participants. The women participating in the project are the ones that are involved in the decision-making on operations and production of produce.
YWCA Namibia is a non-profit organization which advances the empowerment, leadership and rights of women, young women and girls. Monika is the general secretary of YWCA. Yvonne is a team member and has experience with crowdfunding.