By Daran Rehmeyer | Executive Director
Our economic development model has been to find local resources in a community that have little or no value and connecting them to markets where they have value. Buying the commodities locally puts money back into the local economy, spurring additional development.
Coming from Louisiana, imagine our delight and surprise in finding freshwater crawfish in the waterways in the areas we work in Swaziland. Introduced almost two decades ago from Australia, they are an invasive species that has taken frim rooting in this area. Only recently introduced means that the typical Swazi will have nothing to do with them and in fact are scared due to superstitions about being “bit” by one. They in effect have zero value where they are found. Perfect for our model.
Jabulani was making a small salary doing work in the one of the communities outside Maphiveni. He has a wife and several children to provide for; rent, food, school, health care, clothing, etc., etc.
Using traps supplied by Kudvumisa, he was able to quickly earn more money from catching and selling crawfish to Kudvumisa than he made from his salary. A tremendous win for him, his family, and the local shops he could then purchase much needed groceries!
Kudvumisa makes the connection to a market in the capital selling the crawfish to individuals and restaurants.
A perfect fit! Connecting a local resource with no value to a market where it has value (besides removing an invasive species).
Jabulani has continued to trap the crawfish while encouraging others that he knows to also trap them so they can earn extra as well.
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