Overview:
This project provides a great opportunity to assist vulnerable women-led families with vocational training. The first year will identify, train, encourage and empower 50 poor families in nutritional farming practices. Training will include practical demonstrations, hands-on experience, business and character training. Year 2 will progress to business plans for each family, support, mentoring and start-up loans (approx. $200) to begin their own business based on the knowledge they have acquired. Families will be closely followed up and loans will be repaid for future families. Participants will provide 10% of the capital required to buy materials for the business to ensure commitment and buy-in.
Why support this:
This project doesn’t just provide one-off training and then move on. The families are part of a program that spans two years where our partner walks them through the skills needed for income generation. Participants are carefully selected for suitability and commitment and are led through a well-managed, staged process that builds on learning from previous programs completed with Entrust. Community leaders will assist with identifying vulnerable, eligible families and will provide venues for meeting points and training workshops. Local tradespeople and their families will also benefit indirectly through job opportunities.
Budget: $34,000 for Year 2 of a two-year project (total budget $59,200)
The Need:
In recent years, food production in Zimbabwe has been devastated by a number of factors incuding natural disasters and economic and political instability. Recurrent drought, high unemployment and HIV/AIDS (the fifth highest in the world) have contributed to increasing levels of vulnerability and actue food insecurtity. Only 11% of children aged 6-23 months receive a minimum acceptable diet and one-third of Zimbabwean children are stunted or short for their age. Life is tough and insufficient food compounds all their other problems.
Expected Life Change:
