Poultry co-op entrepreneur wins Diageo SA sponsored #YAFF award

Sonwabile Fadana, an entrepreneur of agriculture at Sivulamasango Co-operative Ltd. won R50,000 in prize money as the winner of the Agricultural Training Institutes’ Graduate Award (ATIs), sponsored by Diageo SA.

Advancing youth economic empowerment

Zanele Njapha, Diageo SA sustainability manager, says: “An integral part of our sustainability mandate is to build thriving communities in the regions where we operate. Building on this, we are pleased to be in a position to make a meaningful contribution in the agricultural sector by rewarding the youth who have excelled in contributing to rural development and sustainable agricultural production.

“In keeping with this year’s Youth Month theme - The Year of OR Tambo: Advancing Youth Economic Empowerment, it is befitting that the announcement of the 2017 winners of the #YAFF Awards was made during the month that focuses on and celebrates our country’s youth, their entrepreneurial spirit, and economic enterprises,” adds Njapha.

Much more than a broiler project

Sivulamasango is a registered cooperative started and operated by a group of current and former students of Fort Cox College of Agriculture and Forestry in the Eastern Cape. The cooperative is the culmination of five years of work starting in 2012 when a group of twelve first-year students made contributions from their savings and pocket money to start a broiler project. Fort Cox College provided critical access to infrastructure including the poultry housing.

The cooperative was created out of a need to produce and supply fresh quality vegetables, maize for feeding purposes and broilers (one batch of 400 chicks per week), and to coordinate and encourage agricultural development, small farmer support and advisory services (mentorship). The produce is sold to local supermarkets and retail stores in nearby King William’s Town, MiddleDrift and Alice. The co-op aims to integrate and promote the efforts of the local communities, who contribute to the agricultural development of some of the most deprived and poverty-stricken rural areas of the province.

Well placed sponsorship

Everyone knows the iconic square Johnnie Walker bottle. But, not many people know that the man who gave his name to the world’s most popular Scotch whisky, John Walker, started out as a young farmer in a place called Todriggs in Scotland. Following the death of his father, John was forced to sell the farm and opened a grocery store in nearby Kilmarnock where the first bottles of Johnnie Walker were sold. “Our sponsorship is well positioned to enhance the brand experience of a champion product by championing an initiative that drives community engagement and enrichment. As such, we will follow the winner’s progress and success with much interest going forward,” states Njapha.