Agricultural development programmes that succeed in achieving a fair share of resources for women will see food production and profits increase by up to 20%. That’s according to Self Help Africa’s inclusion advisor Mary Sweeney, who is developing systems to fully integrate gender equality into development projects across sub-Saharan Africa.
Read MoreMalawi Mango
Up to 6,000 smallholder farmers are set to supply mango to a new processing plant being built on the shores of Lake Malawi, in an exciting new public-private partnership for Self Help Africa. The initiative, which sees Self Help Africa recruiting, training and supporting the organisational development of smallholder out-growers across Malawi’s Central Region, is projected to earn each farmer up to $600 per annum from the sale of fruit.
Read MoreNorthern Province Zambia
Self Help Africa commenced work late last year on a major new development programme designed to improve the livelihoods of 16,000 households in Zambia’s remote Northern Province. The Irish Aid funded project will establish an integrated livelihood programme that addresses agricultural production, crop diversification, production and marketing, as well as health and nutrition.
Read MoreBeer & Barley
Beer and hard work don’t often go hand in hand, but for Ethiopian Almaz Tadsaa they are the essential ingredients of her farming success.A small-scale farmer close to Galema mountain in Southern Ethiopia, Almaz is expecting to sell four and a half tonnes of malt barley, when she harvests her crops this Autumn. She is hoping to earn more than €1,000 from the transaction – a record for this hard-working mother of four.
Read MoreAn Elephant’s Tale
25 year old Lennart and Patuma Kamwesa (22) smile when they think about the unusual origins of the ‘chilli club’ that they are members of in their small village of Kalimwi in Balaka, Malawi.
Read MoreWorking with schools
Self Help Africa is involved in an innovative new programme that is leading the promotion and implementation of global citizenship education in Ireland, on behalf of the Irish Government. A new programme for post-primary schools across Ireland, ‘WorldWise Global Schools (WWGS) is tasked with increasing the number, spread and mix of schools engaging with quality development education activities.
Read MoreThink Africa @ Electric Picnic
Concert goers at one of the Summer’s biggest rock festivals got to ‘Think Africa’, when they took part in a novel video project hosted by Self Help Africa at Ireland’s Electric Picnic. Over 120 festival fans took part in the project, while thousands more viewed the resulting video clip within a week of it being posted on YouTube.
Read MoreAbseiling for Africa
More than 50 volunteers bravely banished any fears of heights, as they abseiled for Africa at a series of events organised in Limerick over the past year. Munster Rugby’s iconic Thomond Park stadium and Ireland’s tallest hotel, The Clarion, were two of the locations, as volunteers literally took the plunge to raise funds to support our work.
Read MoreBack on their Bikes
Fresh from their gruelling ten-months overland charity challenge half way around the globe and the boys behind were back on their bikes (literally), plotting an extraordinary endurance event that will bring some of the world’s toughest athletes together, next Spring. Athletes from the UK, United States, mainland Europe and Ireland will compete in, which is being organised by Maghnus Collins Smyth and David Burns as a charity event for Self Help Africa.
Read MoreWorld Champ Strikes Gold in Galway
During last year’s Olympic Games in London, David Rudisha’s 800m gold medal performance made him the star of the show. On a recent flying visit to Ireland the world title-holder showed his 24-carat mettle as a person by becoming a champion of a different kind to thousands of Irish fans. The jet-heeled world-record breaker thrilled children by visiting no less than 16 schools, a university, and also competed alongside hundreds of runners in a series of specially arranged events.
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