Food Security South Africa Project #17691

Lifeskills 2,743 vulnerable children South Africa

by Keep The Dream196

Project Report | Apr 26, 2023
More Exciting SHG News!

By Louise and the KTD196 Dream Team | Director

Olga at home, happy and smiling with her new life.

I know I have been focused on SHG for the past few GG reports however, it is worth getting excited about. Unbeknownst to me, while KTD196 was hosting the training for the Cluster Level Association or next level training for the SHG for representatives from around South Africa, the International representative and National representative where going out to the communities and assessing the viability of starting a Cluster Level group immediately. The result is, KTD196 now has a CLA, Cluster Level Association.

What is a Cluster Level Association? I can hear you ask!

A Cluster Level Association (CLA) is a platform for sharing of experiences of SHGs and to extend mutual support to improve the overall performance of SHGs. The CLA will create voice and space for the poor in the village and help initiate development interventions for poverty reduction.

There are Three sets of principles underlie the Cluster approach and are expected to be adhered to by all Clusters and Cluster partners:

Humanitarian principles;
Principles of partnership;
Accountability to affected populations.

Role :The role of CLA are as follows :

Act as a platform for sharing of experiences by SHGs members
Saturate the mobilization of Poor, Tribal and Extremely Poor & Vulnerable Groups (EPVGs) into SHGs which may have been missed by KTD196.
Facilitate capacity building of the SHG leaders & members, as the CLA grows the need for KTD196 involvement becomes less as the CLA takes over more functions.
Arrange for support services to SHGs and their members to ensure that all SHG practice the 3 principles of the Cluster Approach
Facilitate in preparation and appraisal of pro-poor inclusion plans andmicro-investment plans of member SHGs
Facilitate in preparation of pro-poor inclusions plans of local government, local wards, and sub district Development Plans, giving the poor a voice in their communities.
Facilitate in ensuring the entitlements, basic amenities reach the needy in the village

So, this is particularly exciting as it dovetails with the work we are doing with the children for the next 5years on Child Participation and giving children a voice in their homes, schools and communities at the same time. Empowering people to have a voice especially those who are disenfranchised like the poor and children, one will be able to support the other and vice-a-versa. It’s a huge undertaking but with the ladies on board, success is much more likely.

Currently, we have 760 families represented within the SHG process plus over 1,300 children. As an organization, that is huge.

I am sure you will agree that this is an amazing opportunity for the poor of Greater Tzaneen. It all started because of your support of a dream we had for the futures of the children we serve and now the mothers we serve. You believed in our dream, we are fulfilling that dream, through your support. I hope you can hear the excitement.

There is a lot of hard work to be done, I have worked previously with people who have been basically disregarded, disenfranchised, discarded and made vulnerable, overcoming those mind sets is huge but possible. THANK YOU For being a part of the journey and for making such amazing changes in our communities and the lives of the children for ever.

Blessings

Louise

My name is Olga, I live in Myakayaka village. I am originally from Mozambique, I came to South Africa to seek greener pastures. I have 4 children and they were all born in South Africa. We all don’t have legal documents to be in South Africa so my children are not receiving the Child Support Grant or any form of support. In the community my children and I were called names because of our nationality and background.

I joined the Ahi ti pfuxeni (meaning let’s wake up and start working) SHG last year in July. Initially when I joined SHG I couldn’t understand what the group was all about and how it worked. I just knew that we will be saving money and we are not going to get the money back at the end of the year. I joined the group because my neighbour who was in a similar living condition as me and from Mozambique had joined. I am a very quiet person and prefer internalizing my problems because I have been judged enough in the community. In 2022 I have seen a huge change in me, through the group I am now an interactive person. I am able to speak out about my problems without the fear of being judged.

Even in my household I am a present mother in my children’s lives because of all the advice and discussions we have had in the group. I can communicate, laugh and play with the children and make sure that we are all happy. In the beginning I was always stressed about the challenges that we were faced with daily and had no one to talk to but now I have a group of sisters whom I can talk too.

I have seen and witnessed the impact that being part of SHG has had in my life. All thanks to Ahi ti pfuxeni SHG I am an independent woman who has a lot of self-confidence. I am able to laugh with other people and I am looking very beautiful now. I have also started a small business, I sell 2 litre cool drinks, fried fish and fat cakes in our community.

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Apr 19, 2023
Next Level Training for SHG's!!!! Because of YOU!

By Louise and Nkulu | Director and Project Manager SHG's

Constance and her Seedling Nursery

Thank you for providing support to Keep The Dream196. It is amazing to see the impact of our projects on the communities where we work. As we started establishing SHG's (Self Help Groups) where we already have our children's groups, the parents are becoming passionate supporters of the work we are doing with the children. We have asked the parents to donate their time and become trained volunteers for their children which is having a wonderful effect on the children as they see their parents are caring about them and what they are doing at Scouts.

We are also starting SHG's where we don’t have children’s groups, after the group has been stable, usually 6months we introduce the Children's Project and the parents are interested in having this project made available for their children. Again we draw from the parent’s future leaders of the program so our relationships with the community groups are very enmeshed and symbiotic.

KTD196 is having so much success with our SHG project in fact that we are outstripping the current workers we have, not just that but the International representative is here with KTD196 in Tzaneen with all the other SHG teams from Limpopo and Kwa Zulu Natal to do further training on Cluster Level Training.

KTD196 is being used as the template for success of this program in South Africa because the impact is outstanding.

The International representative plus the national representative are here in Tzaneen to train all the other organizations implementing this project around South Africa, to take it up a level to Cluster formation. Clusters are the amalgamation of 10-12 Self Help Groups with the idea of advocating for real change within their communities. This training, trains the trainers, the Project Officers and the Community Facilitators on exactly what is the form and function of the Cluster and how to transition Self Help Groups to this new level.

We have achieved this because of your support. We are able to give extra attention to the program because of your support.

We currently have over 34 groups and have a target of 55 groups by the end of the year. It is so exciting seeing hope come to these ladies as they realise that they can become financially independent of loan sharks and provide for their families. I wish you could see these ladies transition from victims to victorious and able to make independent decisions for their families, it is so encouraging.

The story below is from Nkulu, the Project Officer for the Self Help Group Project.

Constance is a member of Khomanani SHG. It was formed last year in March 2022. Constance is married and has three children; she is unemployed, and her husband is the primary breadwinner. She used to do a lot of voluntary work because she was tired of sitting at home but always wished to have an income of her own and be independent.

During the wealth ranking process, Constance was seen by the community as a woman who had it all and didn’t fit the criteria of women we are looking for to be part of SHG.

She explained her story to the other women that the 3-bedroom house that they see is empty inside. They couldn’t finish building because things are hard at home. There were times where the husband was not working because he was sick, and they had to live on the children’s SASSA (South Africa Social Security Assistance Scheme) and that’s when she realized that she also needs to start getting an income and helping in the house. After the women agreed to have her as part of the SHG, she was chosen as a book writer and the women also asked if they could meet at her place and she agreed.

As a team we have done a few SHG modules with the Khomanani group because we wish for the women to have financial freedom. “When Mhloti (Community Facilitator) did the activity with us asking us things we buy in town and things we have in our homes or communities (Matrix scoring) I knew that Mhloti was talking to me. I have always had the idea to start my own small seedling farm by recycling mango seeds. I started by collecting mangoes that have been left to rot, peel them, and then dry them up to get the seed. When its dry i plant it and start watering it until it big enough to be sold. Now everyone in the community knows that if you need seedlings for any kind of mango you can come to my house, and I will sell it to you.”

Constance is very happy to be part of the group, for the first in her life she is also able to help with the household needs and she is no longer financially dependent on her husband. She dreams that in future they will be able to finish the house that they have started, buy proper furniture, and take her children to private school as well. She wants to expand her business by adding a variety of seedlings i.e.: spinach, carrots, cabbage, onion, tomatoes, and maybe citrus fruits to sell.

Constance is very proud of her achievements to date but is looking forward to the future as a local entrepreneur.

Thank you for supporting this project and the children's project, we are effectively utilizing your donation to bring about real change to families. The next level is bringing about real change to the communities, all of which is in process by establishing a firm foundation in the community through the SHG’s and Children’s Projects.

Blessings

Louise

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Apr 12, 2023
Color Run April 2023 - Children's Rights!

By Louise and the KTD196 Dream Team | Director

Fun for all!

One of the many things I love about my job is that I get to be a part of all the fun, we get to decide what we want to do, when we want to do it, how we want to do it, and how to fund it.

That is where you come in. You support us and so you assist in funding some of the aspects of the work we do.

So, we decided to have a color fun run and focus on Children's Rights as an advocacy event. We are wanting to raise peoples understanding regarding the serious subject of Children's Right's, Child Participation and Child Protection. We invited the children to participate, and to bring their parents, to hear about the 3 prongs of our program and what is required to realise Children's Rights.

After the presentation to the participants, the children then released the color paint and then the participants run through the villages, as those who were looking on in awe and shock of 150 plus children plus parents chanting about having Children's Rights and wanting to participate in society especially the family, school and community. As adults looking on are speaking about what is happening, children and parents stop and engage these adults in discussions about what is happening and why.

It is an awesome way to educate and engage people in a non threatening manner. Some people expressed their desire to be a part of the initial awareness raising and in future would like to be invited to assist children to have a voice. Of course these are mainly young adults but it is a place to start.

We have started our adventure, the children had a ball, the parents were amazed and on lookers where, well, gobsmacked.

I love my job!

You make it so easy to do really powerful and impactful activities and to build upon those activties to change lives not just now, but lasting change. We decided to have the Fun Run in Shiluvane and start where Thulani was shot only 3 weeks earlier. We will not be moved, we will not be shaken, and we will reclaim rights stolen from the children, that of safety and protection.

Thank you for seeing the value of the work we do, obviously this is just one small activity in the framework of the whole, but I love the fun. Please watch the videos and share messages with us of encouragement. I hope you enjoy!

Blessings

Louise

The Joy is priceless

Now the march starts!

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