Siyabonga Shelter's community-focused beading and gardening programs empower participants with traditional Zulu jewelry-making skills and essential gardening techniques, fostering self-sufficiency and community support.

BEADING PROGRAM:
Growing together... Our community remains close at heart and we aim to empower them with skills to promote independency.  Our Siyabonga Shelter Multi Skills Worker’s engage with different communities namely two groups in Mzingazi, Mkhoma, Jamela, Khondweni and Zikhaleni.

The focus of the beading program is to teach individuals skills on how to bead Zulu traditional Jewelry. Each group consist of 20 participants and the attendance is great! The multi skills worker aims at empowering the participants with the skill of beading necklaces of different sizes, headbands, waistbands, bracelets, earrings too eventually being able to make beautiful sets!

The participants are guided on how to identify the different beads and colors, sorting quantities of beads, working on timeframe to make items and how to price items for resale! This initiative is a wonderful opportunity to empower our community allowing them the opportunity to unlock their creative potential. 
 
GARDENING PROGRAM:
“Providing through empowering” The gardening project is another way of equipping the community with a gardening skills to grow crops for consumption or to sell to gain an income. Community gardens have been set up in the different areas of Mzingazi, Mkhoma, Jamela, Khondweni and Zikhaleni. The community members are very dedicated towards maintaining the gardens. 

Through the gardening program our Multi Skills workers guide the participants on how to prepare the soil, identifying the different seasons to plant and process, uses of different equipment & how to nurture the plants. Some of the crops planted are spinach, onions, sweet potatoes, mealies.  Crops are given back to the community for consumption and for resale.

Our community empowerment programs are a wonderful way to build with our community!