UMTHATHI, AIMING FOR THE STARS

Well, I have written and continue to write about my experiences and observations in working with uMthathi Training Project but who are these people? What is the project all about? At first it was not easy for me to write more about the project because I had just started working with them. However now I do have a clear idea and understanding of the project. Follow me as I paint to you a picture of the project and people who make it possible.

As mentioned above, this project consists of different members who have different responsibilities. One of the active members in this project is Xoliswa Mbewu-Maaotla, she is the project’s administrator; she is passionate about her job and very dedicated to what she is doing. Having worked with her closely in the past few weeks, I have observed that she wants everyone (from Grahamstown) to know about the project. I have seen this through the way she so wanted the show to be aired on Radio Grahamstown. She is always able to explain the different things that they do. I have no doubt that she is a good administrator! She is an interesting woman to work with and she knows what she wants in order for this project to be a success. Moreover she is not afraid to say how she feels about a particular thing. For instance, after one of the Friday radio shows, she came to us and said, “I do not like the way today’s presenter pronounced our names, she sounded unprofessional to me”.

Another member of the project is Sicelo Dyirha, he is the community liaison officer at UMthathi Training project. Sicelo works closely with Xoliswa; they are always together in meetings and they were together again on Friday for the show. Other members include Xolani Mountain, he mainly works with schools, and he is a facilitator in schools, teaching children how to have a sustainable garden using natural resources. He basically teaches about the importance of gardening in and around Grahamstown.

Zolani Zondani is also one of the facilitators and his area of specialization is to teach people about indigenous plants. He teaches in schools and in different communities.   He is also responsible for the nursery, he oversees it. These are the members of Umthati that I have been introduced to and the ones that I have worked closely with. There are, however, also other facilitators who work in different communities, in and around Grahamstown. They also teach about the importance of gardening, and other things like ‘how to make compost’ and ‘how to make home remedies’.

This is a project aimed at improving peoples’ lives, and I find it relevant to the Radio course that I am currently doing, that is, audio production for social change. Social change which can simple be defined as “shifts in the attitudes and behaviour that characterizes a society” (Greenwood, 2008:4). We therefore use radio (technology) as a medium which has a potential of changing peoples’ lives. In this case this is possible through the shows to be broadcast on Radio Grahamstown during the course of this semester and the next term. It would be great if this show can continue even after we have left. This is what we are aiming to do because for now we want to take two of Radio Grahamstown presenters to the umthathi project so that they can see how they operate and how they do things.

The uMthathi training project’s vision is to change people’s lives through education. They do this through educating people about the importance of gardening and about how this skill can help improve their lives. I think this is important because education is a tool through which people are able to advance themselves and their communities. This, according to Xoliswa Mbewu-Maaotla is the vision that this project has.  The mission that the uMthathi workers share is as follows, “to address the effects of poverty, inequality and unemployment by mobilizing human and material resources in a way that is environmentally sustainable, and which promotes self-sufficiency and responsibility”.

I am learning a lot through working with the project. For instance the tower and the keyhole garden are new to me; they are things that I have never heard of. That is why I am very happy that we finally managed to get a slot for the show at Radio Grahamstown on Fridays because I believe people will also get to know the project and what it is about. Listeners will get a chance to call in and ask questions. This has happened last Friday, about three people called in to ask questions. This does not only help the listeners but also help the project to gain publicity as well. On Friday while I was listening to Xoliswa and Sicelo introducing the show, I was very happy and even happier when Thenjiswa Nkosinkulu, the show presenter, opened the lines for the callers to ask questions or to comment.

Things are finally getting together.  Big up to Jeanne du Toit, a representative for the School of Journalism and Media studies at Rhodes, Phumlani Wayi, radio Grahamstown Station Manager, for making the slot for the show possible.

The uMthathi community project offices are situated at the Umthathi House (Extension 7 Nursery- Sophia town) in Grahamstown.