LOCAL RESILIENCE: How a Lenasia community garden helps unemployed families put food on the table
What began in 2022 as a backyard project by retrenched worker Mannini Ntlaba has grown into a one-hectare community garden in Meriting, Lenasia South, run by about 40 volunteers and producing spinach, cabbage, tomatoes, maize, peppers – and even pigs.
In Lenasia South, a community garden has sprung up to tackle unemployment and food insecurity, transforming the lives of many. Started by retrenched worker Mannini Ntlaba in 2022, the initiative has grown to cover an entire hectare and is now managed by about 40 volunteers. The garden produces a wide range of vegetables including spinach, cabbage, tomatoes, maize, peppers, and even pigs, with produce being sold at affordable prices to support the community.
For unemployed father of three Ramsenyane Lefenya, volunteering at the garden means he has fresh vegetables to take home to his family every day, supplementing his limited social relief funds. The project also donates produce to nearby preschools and encourages healthy eating among children. Lefenya credits the garden for teaching him how to grow food at home, allowing him to balance food at home with other household necessities.
The garden also provides a space where members can eat together and support each other, embodying more than just a vegetable garden but a community initiative fostering resilience and unity.
Written by urgent.news from Daily Maverick's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
