SDG 1: END POVERTY

Generation of Income and Savings / loan Schemes

After the CHC has completer the Stage 1 training on Health and Hygiene, the members often start Savings & loan Schemes without any help from the donor. This is the privilege of those members who have qualified by full attendance of the health sessions and provides the incentive for late joiners to go through a fair process to reap rewards.

Africa AHEAD provides small start up capital and appropriate technology for a range of home industries, including bee keeping, paper making, soap making oil production, peanut butter making, animal husbandry, production of herbal remedies, sale of seedlings, chicken breeding, drying of fruit and vegetable.

Training  undertaken by Income Generating (IG) Groups

Vegetable growing: Many CHCs start a communal garden and each member has five beds in which to grow a range of vegetables. The donor is asked to provide fencing for the garden which is situated near a borehole or water source. 

Bee keeping: Members are taught to use ‘Kenya top bar’ hives, a technology used to  control aphids which have been threatening to wipe out the wild bee population in Zimbabwe, as they spread from South Africa. Trees are planted by the community to ensure bees can forage and the wild bee population flourishes.

Medicinal Herbs: Members are given a starter pack of herbs and are taught medicinal remedies for  remedies for common ailments.

Soap making : Members are taught to make soap and cleaning detergents which can be sold to the surrounding community.

Oil Pressing: Sunflower seeds are grown locally  the group is given an oil press.

Sewing School Uniforms: Many women already have sewing skills and are given a sewing machine which which enables them to mass produce school uniforms

Carpentry making bee hives: Carpentry is popular with male CHC members as they were able to supply the many bee keepers with Kenya top bar hives.