BY NOBUHLE MAPLANKA
Local women empowerment organisation Kunzwana Women’s Association and solar power company Natfort Energy recently joined forces to provide solar power to rural women entrepreneurs.
The development will ensure that rural women entrepreneurs are supported to operate their micro-enterprises taking advantage of the home essential solar systems introduced by Natfort Energy on affordable payment arrangements connecting market-based solutions to electricity.
“The partnership with Natfort Engineering has stimulated a robust business culture and operations by rural women entrepreneurs.
“They have negotiated pay- as-you-go payment terms and are using off-grid products, which include lighting, power banks, chargers, radios, television sets, refrigerators and irrigation pumps, among others,” said Kunzwana Women’s Association in a statement.
“A selected and trained team of solar installation agents are regularly seen at rural homesteads, marketing and installing off-grid products supplied by Natfort Energy. This has created much-needed youth employment in the villages, while rural micro-enterprises are addressing poverty on a sustainable basis.
“Women have ululated at having lighting which allows them to continue operating their businesses after dark, conduct mobile banking and transactions thereby increasing profits and incomes.
“Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, schoolchildren have been learning from home using the solar-powered lighting, power banks for computers and maintained their WhatsApp group chats with other scholars. ”
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The women empowerment organisation said its members have established fully functional micro-enterprises in their respective villages in 17 districts throughout the country.
“Having completed a four-module skills training programme at the multi-skills training centre, Kunzwana members are assisted to access affordable finance, market linkages, digital training and business development,” the statement read.
Kunzwana said women have been equipped with skills ranging from horticulture, small livestock rearing, including poultry, weaving, garment making, basketry, food processing (sweet potato and cassava flours), to Roselle cultivation.
“Given the scourge of the Covid-19 pandemic, herb gardens have turned out to be an instant feature. The market demanded profitable herbs such as zumbani, moringa, Makoni tea, lemon grass, garlic and lemons which Kunzwana members consistently supplied to high-end shops in both rural and urban centres,” the statement read.
