School matron turns small-scale farmer

Lena Kasper is a community councillor and matron at a local school in Utuseb, a small community in the Erongo Region, in addition to a small-scale farmer success story.She is but one of the success stories from the Utuseb community, which received training on horticulture, as well as seeds and fruit trees, through the agriculture ministry and the GIZ-Farming for Resilience (F4R) project.According to a statement issued by GIZ, growing up, Kasper aspired to leave the settlement to work in a factory in Walvis Bay.Small beginningsShe was successful and got a job in a factory until her father’s death led her back to Utuseb. She returned to her childhood home to maintain the home and the cattle, and started working at the local school.In 2014, she found herself in a tough position having to raise five children with her pay cheque barely covering all their needs, and this is when she started gardening, the statement says."Her late father only gardened reeds to feed the cattle, and she thought to herself, if reeds can grow in the desert to feed animals, surely one can grow vegetables to feed a family, and so she started."She started her garden with onions and green peppers and, until a year ago, that was all she grew.Turning over a new leafThen, on 16 October 2021, World Food Day was commemorated in Utuseb, where various development corporation organisations and government ministries handed out food parcels and fruit trees as well as information flyers.At the event, she received various seeds and a moringa tree and gathered all the information flyers she could.After the celebrations, the GIZ-Farming for Resilience project started supporting the community by providing training in horticulture and nutrition as well as providing seeds, fruit, and moringa trees through their implementing partner, the agriculture ministry.According to the statement, Kasper attended the training provided by the project throughout the year and has since diversified her crop to include spinach, sweet potato, beetroot, and a fig tree.AbundanceShe was surprised by what she achieved in just one year of consistently applying the knowledge gained through the training."Tire gardening is one of my key takeaways from the training and the moringa tree has changed my life. I take at least one each day, coupled with a lot of water and include it in my tea. It has truly improved my health issues, specifically my constant nausea," said Kasper.She has since expanded her garden and has begun to implement value addition by making fig jam.As Kasper now provides vegetables for herself, she is able to support her children and mother with the money she saves.She aims to start selling her produce in the coming year, as well as the fig jam she currently makes."One thing gardening has taught me is to start small with what I have, to be patient and to work hard," says Kasper.

School matron turns small-scale farmer

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-08

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School matron turns small-scale farmer

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-08

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