The African connection with Canada & USA
The non-profit organization Plenty came to the Kingdom of Lesotho, southern Africa, in the late 70’s, as the first African volunteers who had received technical training in the USA and Canada, returned home to initiate the Plenty Lesotho Rural Development project.
With financial backing from both Plenty Canada and Bread for the World (Germany) the construction of the Village Technology and Training Center (VTTC) began at the Quthing River Valley, with the aim of being both a base for our volunteers and a technical hands-on school for training local people in various skills relevant to their needs. Plenty International also contributed to the project by assigning some of their skilled volunteers to Lesotho in order to assist with its construction.
Respecting the traditional values, practices and wishes of our hosts, we planned together every phase of implementation. The Center was built from local available materials such as sandstone, thatch grass, bricks and concrete blocks manufactured by local entrepreneurs. The architectural design was inspired from the local villages layouts so that it would fit within the surroundings. We used appropriate technology and energy as much as possible, including solar electricity and solar water heating for most of our basic needs at the Center, to serve as an example to other communities and projects in Lesotho.
As per local people's request one of the main priorities became the Village Water Supply program, through which more than 30 villages in the valley were assisted with gravity-fed water supplies throughout the first few years of our program. We also succeed in training quite a few local technicians in the various developed skills regarding spring catchment, water storage and distribution. Plenty Canada with funding from C.I.D.A (Canadian International Development Agency) provided the basic materials, skilled labor and technical supervision, while the villagers contributed with basic labor such as trenches excavation and back filling, manual transportation of sand and aggregate to the building sites.
Canadian volunteers also joined the project to establish a tree nursery and work closely with local chiefs and villagers to grow trees all over the barren hills of the Quthing River valley. These trees grew quickly, providing protection for the villages water springs, arrest the severe soil erosion, fuel wood and building materials in this region of the country. In the fields of agriculture and nutrition, our volunteers carried out research with local farmers and families in order to establish their needs. Increasing food production became another priority and with funding from Canada we purchased a tractor with a few basic implements for our agricultural program with local farmers. Sorghum, soybean and maize trials were carried out to see which varieties were more suitable for that climate and soil conditions. We also assisted several Basotho women to establish community gardens with irrigation systems, consequently improving their food self-reliance and diets of their families.
Mwana Bermudes lived at Plenty Lesotho with his family for 5 years, working as Project Director and also in charge of the Rural Water Development program.
Suburban Community Development
