Tshwarisano: The bounty of the sea empowers a community

Date

22 September, 2005

Not all oysters contain pearls, but a rich harvest from the sea can line your pocket with cash and put your bread on your table. Astonishingly, it can even inspire your peers to turn from crime.

This is the experience of a community based at the Umtata river mouth, located on the Transkei Wild Coast about 100 km southwest of the city of Umtata, between the estuaries of the Umdumbi and Umtata rivers.

Xhosa clans have been practicing subsistence fishing off this rocky coastline for eons of time and in more recent years young men and women sold their harvests to local holiday visitors and remote hotels.

The majority of the community is unemployed and illiterate and infrastructure is sparse. Young people had little to do and many turned to petty crime which unfortunately started impacting on tourism.

The tide tuned after a group of young men and women got together to establish the Tshani Mankosi Fishing and Aquaculture Cooperative with the objective to create a viable and sustainable employment base at the Umtata river mouth. Today the cooperative has over 100 members.

The cooperative has its own board of directors, with representatives from each of the eight villages located in the Yandeni municipal area, and a working committee. The members have constructed an office building.

Funding has been obtained from Marine and Coastal Management, a division of the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, and project assistance comes from the University of Stellenbosch.

Eventually, the dream is to integrate all coastal communities living along this 600 kilometre stretch of coastline into the mainstream economy of the country.

Both men and women, many of whom are experienced divers and fishers, participate in the harvest from the sea, which includes fish, crayfish, mussels and oysters and seaweed.

Sharp handmade instruments are used to pry shellfish off the rocks at low tide by divers who go to work on submerged rocks close to the shore. The river mouth is used as a holding tank for the shellfish

Armed with little more than protective gloves and spears, a handsome bounty is made from crayfish found beneath rocks at low tide. They say that the best catches are made at times of a beaming full moon.

Women enter the sea at low tide to collect seaweed from beneath the water and dry it in the sun before it is sold.

Deep sea fishing is lucrative and can be practiced all year round. As many as 50 different species flourish in these waters. But the going is tough as only limited equipment for the catch is available.

Every fortnight buyers arrive to purchase collectively or through individual catcher. The cooperative receives a percentage of sales and the catcher the rest.

The community at Yandeni is on track as far as self empowerment is concerned. Young men and women have become role models for their peers and crime is almost non-existent. Tourism is back to normal and expected to grow in the face of this exciting development.

Thanks to the Sasol and Tshwarisano transaction, these Eastern Cape fishing communities now stand to benefit even further from the spin-offs derived from the proposed Uhambo joint venture.

Total Stores	Division	Store Location	Address	Tel No
1	Relabelled	Salt River	29 Brickfield Road, Salt River, Cape Town	(021)4479913
2	Relabelled	Bellville	Shop 4, Corner Voortrekker Rd & Durban RD, Bellville	(021)9171860
3	Relabelled	Kenilworth	Unit number 3 access park, Chichester road, Kenilworth	(021)6714778,
4	Relabelled	Kuilsrivier	Shop 4 & 5 Access Park, Kuilsrivier	(021)9031294 061 287 3980
5	Relabelled	Mobeni	Cnr Grimsby & Leicester Rd, Mobeni, Durban	(031)4620540 W\House (031) 469 9409
6	Relabelled	Pier 14	21A Pier 14, Shopping Centre, Port Elizabeth	(041)4841575 083 5176 728
7	Relabelled	Marlboro	13 Sparten Crescent ,Marlboro , Ext 3 Johannesburg	(011) 262 0460
8	Relabelled	Soweto	Maponya Shop 200 2127 Chris hani Road, klipspruit ext5 Soweto	(011) 933 1023
9	Relabelled	Umlazi	Shop 155 Umlazi Mega City 50 Griffiths Mxenge Highway Umlazi	(031) 902 1325
10	Relabelled	Epping	10 Losack avenue , epping industrial	(021) 534 0401
1	BCWC	Kloof	Lifes on Kloof, 50 Kloof Street, Gardens ,Cape Town, shop G-15	(021) 422 1593 078 211 8051
2	BCWC	Canal Walk	Shop 619 Canal Walk , Century BLVD, Century City , Cape Town 7441	(021) 551 2891
3	BCWC	Monte Casino	Shop 80B Montecasino, No1 Monticasino Bouelvard Fourways , 2191 Magents	(011) 465 0438
4	BCWC	Menlyn	Shop UF 42 & 43 cnr atterbury road & lois avenue , menlo park , Pretoria	(012) 764 9600
5	BCWC	Balito	SHOP 608 LEONORA DRIVE,DOLPHIN COAST,BALLITO,4399	032 586 0242
6	BCWC	Rosebank	Shop GF08, The Zone, Rosebank mall, Oxford Street, Johannesburg	(011)268 1114
1	Magents	Canal Walk	Shop 08 , Century Blvd , Century City 7441	(021) 551 2533 JP CELL: 064 686 4026
2	Magents	Monte Casino	Shop 21 Montecasino, No1 Monticasino Bouelvard Fourways , 2191 Magents	(011) 465 6721 074 669 6310 073 804 4352 079 884 7607
3	Magents	Menlyn	MENLYN MALL , SHOP G190 CNR ATTERBURY ROAD & LOIS AVENUE,MENLO PARK,PRETORIA	(012) 348 4725 073 8677 468 - Sieya , kiley , OUPA, Micheal
4	Magents	Balito	SHOP 608 LEONORA DRIVE,DOLPHIN COAST,BALLITO,4399	061 521 7446 032 586 1467
1	WSA	Menlyn	MENLYN MALL ,LF41A CNR ATTERBURY ROAD & LOIS AVENUE,MENLO PARK,PRETORIA	Vicky - 078 816 1921 land line - 012 348 4766
6	BCWC	Rosebank	Shop GF08, The Zone, Rosebank mall, Oxford Street, Johannesburg	(011)268 1114
1	Magents	Canal Walk	Shop 08 , Century Blvd , Century City 7441	(021) 551 2533 JP CELL: 064 686 4026
2	Magents	Monte Casino	Shop 21 Montecasino, No1 Monticasino Bouelvard Fourways , 2191 Magents	(011) 465 6721 074 669 6310 073 804 4352 079 884 7607
3	Magents	Menlyn	MENLYN MALL , SHOP G190 CNR ATTERBURY ROAD & LOIS AVENUE,MENLO PARK,PRETORIA	(012) 348 4725 073 8677 468 - Sieya , kiley , OUPA, Micheal
4	Magents	Balito	SHOP 608 LEONORA DRIVE,DOLPHIN COAST,BALLITO,4399	061 521 7446 032 586 1467
1	WSA	Menlyn	MENLYN MALL ,LF41A CNR ATTERBURY ROAD & LOIS AVENUE,MENLO PARK,PRETORIA	Vicky - 078 816 1921 land line - 012 348 4766

Overview

Overview

Overview

Overview

Overview

Overview

Overview

Tshwarisano: The bounty of the sea empowers a community

Tshwarisano: The bounty of the sea empowers a community