Last week, N≠a Jaqna Conservancy Chairperson, Sarah Zungu and her team, delivered N$40,000 worth of additional food to local schools. The food was purchased from the Conservancy’s income which it had put aside for ‘benefits’ to the community. At the 2017 Annual General Meeting members voted to spend N$80,000 on providing additional food to local schools. The conservancy will spend the remaining, N$40,000, after last week’s distribution, later in the year bringing the total spent to N$80,000. It is hoped that the food will benefit the school children and lead to improved attention in the class room.
The donation of the food is essential and it will greatly assist in improving the nutrition of the predominantly San school community. Lack of food, especially nutritious food leads to all kinds of problems for children and adults alike. However, especially children that are still growing are affected. As lack of proper food can stunt growth, lead to lack of concentration, low energy levels and a reduction in their physical and mental development. Therefore the delivery of the foodstuffs comes as a great relief to the learners, teachers and those involved with the San community.
The conservancy is also implementing longer term activities to improve food security in the area through EU Climate Change Adaptation funding for agricultural and livestock activities. Through empowering the San community in small scale agricultural projects, to teaching them about crop rotation, they are able to become more and more self-sufficient.
N≠a Jaqna Conservancy Chairperson, Sarah Zungu said; “It gives us great pleasure to be able to do this for the children in our community and use our resources this way. However, I look forward to the day when this additional food will not be necessary as the community is able to fully live of the land and feed themselves. Through income from Devil’s Claw and their agricultural and livestock activities.”
Windhoek 2 October 2017