ERP uses Cooperative management and Second tier services to assist previously disadvantaged communities to obtain self sufficiency.
Since 1994 farmers, craftsmen and women, small micro and medium enterprises in South Africa have been affected by deep social and economic changes. This transition causes many adjustment problems in some sectors of society. Despite government efforts the majority of rural South Africans still lack adequate access to support and services for sustainable livelihoods and enterprise development, as well as sustainable access to financial services (savings, credit, insurance, housing).
This situation calls for a much stronger emphasis on mutual self-help and reliance on own resources of people especially in rural and semi-urban areas and a reduced expectation that Government intervenes to assist them. People who form a co-operative or a self-help group have recognised that it is more successful to join hands with others and to start together an initiative from the “bottom” than to wait for help from the “top”. Central to the legal concept of a co-operative or a similar self-help group is its legal obligation to promote the economic interests of its members.
ERP honey comes directly from our rural KwaZulu Natal and North West provinces projects. Portia Morudi, who runs ERP honey, trains and mentors our beneficiaries in beekeeping and acts as a market for their honey, offering competitive pricing at all times. This product is widely available in various Gauteng and other retail outlets located in other provinces. You can contact us directly to find out where you can purchase your ERP-branded honey. Remember, a portion of what is paid for each bottle of honey is invested back into assisting more ERP apiculture Cooperative enterprises.
Our Sekelekani Cooperative have since commenced with harvesting of their chillies, now that the rains have subsided. They have also been adding more nutrients into the soil through applying ammonium nitrate and limestone after the heavy rains leached most of the nutrients over the past few weeks. Projections show that they are most likely to harvest an additional 450kg of the chillies shortly. We are pleased to also report that their apiculture project is thriving, with the total number of occupied hives having risen to 38 from 34.
On a sad note, we once again report that the continued unrelenting rains received over the past few weeks have resulted in our Sekelekani Cooperative losing a portion of their chilli crop. Most of their field has been waterlogged, which adversely affected their plants. As a way of addressing this challenge, a new plot has been secured for utilization by the Cooperative. The new piece seems not to have any water logging issues, which should provide a long term solution to this perennial problem.
Sekelekani Cooperative who despite the floods that occurred in KwaZulu Natal Province, causing an unmitigated disaster and unusually higher than average rainfall, had continued with their day-to-day activities. In April they managed to send over 1,500 kg of their harvested chilli produce to the market, giving them a favourable financial return inspite of the natural calamity they faced. The group continued to perform exceptionally well throughout the year, covering several milestones in both their agricultural and apiculture ventures.
