This project is assisting Food and Trees for Africa in working with the A Re Direng Care Givers, a volunteer group that supports the Moretele Clinic in Makapanstad in North West province, by implementing a permaculture food gardening project to improve food security and improved nutrition and health for members and for themselves, and for others in the community who are infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.

The project received an instalment of R52 500 on 15 February 2007, and a second instalment of R52 500 on 8 June 2007. The full cost of the project (not including the SASIX administration, monitoring and evaluation fee) is R210 000, with R105 000 still to be received.

Implementation of project activities to date

After the issue with land permission was sorted out (see May 2007 report) and a letter was provided by the Tribal Council regarding delays due to authorisation of use of a new site, the layout of the garden was able to begin. The area to be used for the garden was cleared and fencing was purchased and delivered via the procurement thereof by Food & Trees for Africa (FTFA). The project members were given the task of erecting the fence themselves to conserve the time that they have with FTFA for Permaculture training sessions. They successfully raised the 1.5m high fence around a 30m² area.

Tools and garden equipment have been delivered to the project (see table below). Two tanks were also purchased and will be erected to help the project effectively use what water they have to cultivate the garden through water storage. This will be reinforced with the project members in the training session focusing on water management. It is important to note that at present the tanks are being filled by the local municipality on a monthly basis. This is not a sustainable practice. According to the agreed proposal a borehole is to be drilled and FTFA has sourced quotes from various hydrologists to implement this.

Educational resources, including the My Nursery Booklet and the Greening Booklets have been distributed. These include information on seed propagation and the management of small scale nurseries, as well as the importance and benefits of planting and maintaining trees. T-shirts for the project have also been designed.

Training sessions on garden mapping and design took place in the previous reporting period. Project members have now had an opportunity put to this into practice by mapping out and digging the garden layout. The design follows Permaculture principles which include garden designs such as cyclic, mandala and rectangular beds and makes use of swales for effective water and soil management. Both the beds and swales have been dug. During this practical session various topics were elaborated upon to create a deeper, practical understanding of Permaculture. Topics discussed included: Permaculture revision, site analysis, Hp and Lp, soil types and analysis, contours, swales and land preparation

Once the garden was laid out it was important to compost the soil to prepare it for the seedlings, and cow manure was used for this. Soil preparation was discussed on the first visit to the project. Initially FTFA had supplied compost to the project but once the garden is up and running they will be able to make their own compost using organic kitchen waste and garden refuse. This emphasises the ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ principles of Permaculture. The theory of soil fertility improvement has been covered theoretically, including the value and use of earthworm activity, liquid manure, nitrogen enhancing plants, kraal manure and compost making.

Mulching is an important practice that must be implemented once the compost has been dug into the beds as it helps to condition the soil. The FTFA project officer discussed this with the project members, outlining the various materials that can be used, namely, grass, paper, cardboard, leaves, bark and other garden refuse. The project members have mulched their garden in preparation for the sowing of their first harvest. Mulch was supplied by FTFA at this stage since the area is too bare to provide useful mulching material. In the short term this will, however, depend upon the municipality’s capacity to deliver water for the tanks.

The project members have been left with the task of digging 0.5m² holes in preparation for the tree planting. Fruit trees will be planted in amongst the vegetables to attract bees and other insects which help in the pollination process, and indigenous trees will be planted as a windbreak along the fence at the border of the garden.

Robert Makakaba and Tracey Molatjie are scheduled to attend the Permaculture Design Course in October 2007. The following training workshops and project implementation items have not yet been conducted but will be done in accordance with the activity schedule:

• Drilling of borehole
• Planting of vegetables
• Seed propagating, inter-planting, companion planting, crop rotation
• Planting of fruit and shade trees, composting and mulching
• Transplanting, managing seedlings
• Compost making, earthworm activity, liquid manure, animal manure and green manure (practical demonstration)
• Identifying pests, pest control, repellent methods, organic sprays
• Water harvesting and conservation techniques rain water harvesting
• Installation and management of irrigation
• Medicinal plants, herbs training workshop and planting
• Solar cooker workshop
• Garden maintenance – weeding, plant care, pruning, planting vegetables for consumption and for marketing
• Care and maintenance of fruit trees, pruning and shaping
• Garden Maintenance and preparation for launch
• Project launch

Project expenditure to date

Beneficiaries of the project

The project includes 22 full-time members who are actively involved in developing their garden, including a core group of 16 members. Included in this group are members of other care centres from surrounding areas. These people are currently being trained in Permaculture skills and are helping to develop the A Re Direng food garden. In so doing, valuable knowledge and skills are being spread throughout the group and to the surrounding community, including over 200 orphans and vulnerable children.

This is intended to promote sustainable livelihoods and uplift the community members by allowing them to help themselves. The food from the garden, on the other hand, increases the nutritional well-being for all those benefiting from the fresh produce (either through feeding schemes or by buying vegetables for their own consumption).

Challenges faced in implementation

Considering the time delay on land mobilisation, the project is set for a fast and productive implementation process and it is envisioned that the garden will have a high yield and productive garden within the next few months. Water tanks and stands will be installed within the week which will assist with fertilising the soil and preparing the ground for transplanting seedlings, which will take place after the next training workshop that will focus on seed propagation and planting.

The project members and care givers are highly motivated and excited from their experiences encountered in the development of their garden. The project leader, is loyal and dedicated and will ensure the management and co-ordination of the garden over the next year.

Monitoring and evaluation

The project is continually monitored by the FTFA project officers involved. The training workshop sessions provide insight into the progress of the project and highlight any downfalls and/or achievements. These are documented in daily reports compiled by the project officers after each workshop. Two FTFA project officers have been involved in the project, which acts as an effective way of monitoring each other’s and the project members’ progress. Attendance registers are also signed at each of the training sessions by the project members to monitor the participation levels of the project members and photographs are taken at each stage of garden development. These will be appended in the interim report.

Progress reports such as this are regularly sent out, documenting and evaluating the project’s progress. The objectives as stated in the assessment proposal forwarded to SASIX are as follows:

• To contribute to greening, sustainable natural resource management and food security The garden has been laid out and prepared for the planting of trees (indigenous and fruit), soil conditioning and pest management plants, vegetables and herbs. Water and soil management have been taught and the implementation of these has shown the project members the value of conserving these resources. Not all of the existing indigenous trees on the project site were removed, in an attempt to conserve the natural vegetation. In addition to this all trees to be planted in this garden will be non-invasive species. This too is used to exemplify conservation principles to the project members. Natural materials will be used in all garden practices, particularly soil fertility and pest management. Once the garden is successfully established, the project members will have the resources required to contribute towards food security for themselves and amongst those they assist through their care work.

• To create an awareness of the benefits of environmental upliftment activities amongst all communities of southern Africa Permaculture is based on the premise that people should manage their natural resources in a sustainable way. Through the various workshops this value will be refined, emphasised and demonstrated practically so that members learn to care for and manage their environment sustainably throughout their daily gardening activities. It is hoped that this value will be transferred to other areas of their lives and to the community at large.

• To contribute to poverty alleviation, improved environments, capacity building and skills development, increasingly for people living with HIV/AIDS This project develops the project members’ capacity to grow their own food, thus alleviating poverty related to inadequate sources of nutrition. In addition, the garden creates the potential for income generation and feeding scheme activities, furthering the capacity building effects of the project. There is an emphasis on the use and value of local resources, again contributing to poverty alleviation. The availability of fresh food on a regular basis enhances nutrition and overall performance. This is an essential tool in fighting HIV/AIDS. The skills development resulting from the training is easily replicable and can therefore be spread throughout the community enhancing sustainability, poverty alleviation and environmental upliftment over a broader area.

Conclusions

By enhancing the project members’ ability to develop various skills related to Permaculture technologies, the expected impact is to assist the centre with income generation and a sustainable infrastructure to alleviate their social and food security issues. This in turn empowers each member to contribute to his or her community in the sharing of skills and environmental and nutrition education and upliftment.

Once established, this project will begin to change the lives of those in this community. For the project and community members the establishment of a Permaculture food garden will be first (and initially the only) local source of fresh herbs and vegetables. The skills and knowledge developed during the training sessions can have an exponential impact by being replicated throughout other communities and by other organisations (for example schools, clinics and community-based organisations) to enhance food security and poverty alleviation in a sustainable way. The aspect of adequate nutrition is a crucial social need and this gardening project addresses that need for both project and community members – particularly those who require home-based care and children orphaned by HIV/AIDS – with short and long term returns.

It is envisioned that after the training workshops and the practical implementation have been completed over the next year that the A Re Direng centre will have established a good infrastructure to stabilise their nutrition and feeding program, be capable of serving as a resource centre for various NGOs and care givers organisations within the area and to provide the necessary education and skills to the wider community.