Today we would like to introduce you to our training project using the example of Tshirilogo Primary School, Goedgevonden Village in Ventersdorp in the North-West Province/South Africa where our basic course took place from 27.02 – 17.03.2023 and the advanced course from 14.11 – 02.12.2022.
The primary school is located in Ikageng, a township near Potchefstroom, in the North-West Province of South Africa, 158 km west of Johannesburg.
During the basic course, a vegetable garden of 75 sqm was established by the trainees. The trainees prepare the seedbeds for planting. To promote growth and keep the soil healthy, the trainees are trained to make their own compost. Another successful garden has been established, the following vegetables have been grown: spinach, cabbage, tomatoes, green beans, carrots.
At the end of the training, each trainee receives their AgriSeta approved certificate and basic starter kit. The trainer explains all the contents of the toolkit consisting of SUNfarming Vitality Booster Porridge, seeds, bucket, coconut fibre block, basic disease spray, seed trays, fork.
This training benefits 20 adults and 13 children through training in vegetable cultivation and healthy eating. The food produced is used to provide for the families‘ own needs, and any surplus produced can be sold at regional markets.
The entrepreneur course in vegetable cultivation was successfully completed by 13 women and 3 men.
A vegetable garden of 468 square metres was planted. 56 adults and 42 children benefited from this.
The theoretical leearning plan included the following main points:
– Recognising capital needs and understanding the need to record income and various costs in a farming business.
– Application of marketing principles in agriculture.
– Basic knowledge of soil fertility and crop nutrition.
– Operation and maintenance of specific irrigation systems.
– Control pests, diseases and weeds on crops effectively and responsibly.
Upon successful completion of the course, all participants will receive a training certificate recognised by AgriSeta and an advanced starter pack consisting of SUNfarming Vitality Booster Porridge, water pipe with couplings, steel rake, pesticide, fungicide, shade net, 5 different seeds: Tomato, Beetroot, Spinach, Beans and Cabbage.
At the same time, the trainees of the advanced courses are taught the basics of solar energy and its benefits by highly qualified trainers from our subsidiary SUNCybernetic.
The courses in vegetable gardening and healthy nutrition conducted by SUNfarming are controlled by the competent South African Qualification Authority (SAQA). The certificates awarded at graduation represent a nationally recognised qualification that facilitates entry into the labour market.
The Vitality Porridge Project provides immediate help against hunger and at the same time sustainable help-for-self via certified training courses in vegetable cultivation and healthy nutrition for the local population. Labour is needed for production in the food industry. Accredited Agri-SETA trainers in organic vegetable production, provided by SUNfarming South Africa, take over the training of these workers. In this way, additional new jobs are created locally. Our trainees are much better equipped to find work in agriculture after completing our training.
The theoretical and practical training includes everything from soil preparation to sowing, irrigation and pest control that is necessary for a successful harvest. The gardens established by the first group are expanded and maintained by subsequent groups. In the course of the growing season, subsequent groups can learn pest control and pruning in a practical way. All trainees receive a file with the training material. On the last day of the course, each trainee receives the nationally recognised SAQA (South African Qualification Authority) training certificate of successful participation at a small handover ceremony.
So far, more than 20 schools with over 10,000 learners and at least 60,000 family members are participating in the project. 300 unemployed people are trained in the training programme. For the 60 best), the project offers further training on farm land provided by SUNfarming in Potchefstroom. As licensed SUNfarming franchisers, a large number of them will help to supply supermarkets with organic vegetables and herbs.
As an emergency aid, Vitality Porridge will be distributed to school children as a daily vitamin and nutrient rich supplement to their school lunch during the project period. In addition, the children receive a 5 kg bag to take home to their families. As there are often not enough plates in the schools, Vitality Porridge can also be distributed and drunk more diluted as a milkshake. The children love it even more this way, because it tastes like a vanilla shake, they say.
The course participants can also take home a 5kg bag of Vitality Porridge.
The school programmes supported by KfW/DEG aim to tackle malnutrition, one of the biggest development problems in African countries, at its root. Children are empowered directly at school and teachers are trained to pass on the knowledge they have gained about the essential importance of healthy food to the children. Through training and education directly in the production facilities and in cooperation with the church communities, jobs and sustainable future prospects are also created for the people in Africa.
"The medicinal herbs for the Vitality Porridge are already grown, dried and packaged as multiple crops (intercropping), together with various vegetables, by trainees in our Food & Energy Training Centres. The extruders provided on the Food & Energy facilities for the production of Vitality Porridge have been technically enlarged to produce up to 200,000 food portions per day," Peter Schrum, SUNfarming founder and main shareholder, tells us.
"We would like to expressly thank all project partners without whose support we would not have been able to realise the emergency food aid and training programmes in the Vitality Porridge project," Peter Schrum continues.
SUNfarming Vitality Porridge Project in South Africa is a PPP project and is funded by KfW/DEG. The project is supported in its organisation by develoPPP, Skills for All, german cooperation, F.E.E.D. (Food-Energy-Education-Development e.V.).
Multi-award-winning SUNfarming Training Center
Over 3,500 trainings have taken place at the SF Solar Training Center and SF Food & Energy Training Center since 2013 for participants from all over Africa. With the help of KfW/DEG, SUNfarming/Alensys successfully realised the Solar Training Centre at North-West University in Potchefstroom, South Africa, back in 2013, as part of a PPP Public Private Partnership Programme. In 2015, the solar training centre was expanded by 15 agro-solar greenhouses to become the SF Food & Energy Training Centre. The training centres, which are constantly being expanded even after the funding has expired, are in full operation and, in addition to solar power for the campus, also supply fresh vegetables to the North West University campus and a grocery shop in Potchefstroom (Pick & Pay).
SUNfarming GmbH & Co. KG
Zum Wasserwerk 12
15537 Erkner
Telefon: +49 (3362) 8859-100
Telefax: +49 (3362) 8859-130
http://www.sunfarming.de
E-Mail: info@sunfarming.de
