Social good through community enterprise
Program: The G.R.O. Grannies’ Poultry Project
Funded By: G.R.O. Investors / The Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI)
Funding Period: 2008 to 2010 (completed)
Background: In May of 2008, G.R.O. Director James White met with members of the Lisemeng II Poultry Association, a collective group of grandmothers and women in their community, who were keen to start a small-scale poultry project in order to alleviate poverty in their community. Their project was already off the ground however it lacked the financial and technical capacity to succeed. G.R.O. conducted a needs assessment with the collective and in late May of 2009 they became the second social-enterprise project of G.R.O. Lesotho.
What did G.R.O. provide to the Grannies?
The Grannies project was conceptually designed by the collective members themselves prior to G.R.O’s involvement. However, the Grannies reported having a 70%+ mortality rate of their chickens and difficulty turning a profit month-to-month. Despite their best efforts, they were not in a financial position to overcome these barriers. G.R.O. investors provided for the winterization/refurbishment of their poultry facility, early stock purchases of feed and supplies, an 8-week poultry production training and access to G.R.O. transport and office resources. Funding was provided in these areas from May 2008 through January 2010. Through early 2010 G.R.O. also supported the Grannies? in securing a long-term market via the Eastern and Southern Africa Small-Scale Farmers’ Forum (ESAFF).
What are the results?
The winterization of the Grannies’ chicken facility resulted in a decrease in chicken mortality rate to less than 10%. The refurbishment of the facility and support in making targeted stock purchases led to a 200% increase in their production capacity. With the support of G.R.O. supporters and through their ingenuity and hard-work, the Grannies are now able to produce 400 chickens every 4-6 weeks when operating at full capacity. The resultant challenge faced early in 2010 was that the Grannies did not have a reliable market for their chickens and were actually over-producing due to their increased capacity. In Spring of 2010 they were connected by G.R.O. to the Eastern and Southern Africa Small-scale Farmers Forum (ESAFF), who will act as a long-term wholesale purchaser of their products and will connect them to stock and supply discounts via other members. The development of this relationship was the last hurdle for the Grannies on their road to self-sufficiency. The Grannies, while no longer in need of G.R.O. financing, will remain a project partner of G.R.O. Lesotho and will have access to G.R.O. technical support, access to our local office resources, and participate as collective members of the Lesotho program.
Congratulations to the Grannies - and thank you to the G.R.O. supporters who made it possible!
How does the Grannies’ project contribute to social good?
The chickens and profits from chicken sales are used to provide vulnerable and destitute families in their community with poverty relief. This includes food support, provision of transport for hospital visits, basic / non-pharmaceutical first-aid supplies to caregivers of HIV and TB positive family members, and other social welfare support as needed by community members. Importantly, the Grannies? identify their recipients via the local church and other community channels – as they have become more known in the community, families often come requesting assistance, knowing the Grannies’ project is an outlet for support.
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