In the region, a group of women find themselves raising their children alone, following a separation or the loss of their husband. Many of them grow cassava, a crop that demands time and effort, but which, sold raw, brings in little.
Our club wanted to offer them real support. The idea was simple: instead of selling raw cassava, why not process it on-site into a finished, more profitable product? Cassava can become flour, then chikwangue, a food that's highly sought after in the capital.
But processing cassava requires resources these women didn't have. They needed the means to dry it properly, to let it ferment under the right conditions, and then to grind it. So we funded this equipment, step by step, with the women themselves learning to use it.
The result exceeded our expectations. Chikwangue sells well in the capital, so much so that a truck was purchased to transport the production further and more regularly.
What stands out most isn't just the economic side. These women, who used to live day to day with very little, now earn enough to support their families and, above all, to send their children to school. For many, it's the first time in a long while that they can look toward the future instead of simply getting through to the next day.
Rotary didn't do the work for them. We simply gave these women the tools to accomplish what they already knew how to do, with greater strength and dignity.
Our club wanted to offer them real support. The idea was simple: instead of selling raw cassava, why not process it on-site into a finished, more profitable product? Cassava can become flour, then chikwangue, a food that's highly sought after in the capital.
But processing cassava requires resources these women didn't have. They needed the means to dry it properly, to let it ferment under the right conditions, and then to grind it. So we funded this equipment, step by step, with the women themselves learning to use it.
The result exceeded our expectations. Chikwangue sells well in the capital, so much so that a truck was purchased to transport the production further and more regularly.
What stands out most isn't just the economic side. These women, who used to live day to day with very little, now earn enough to support their families and, above all, to send their children to school. For many, it's the first time in a long while that they can look toward the future instead of simply getting through to the next day.
Rotary didn't do the work for them. We simply gave these women the tools to accomplish what they already knew how to do, with greater strength and dignity.