Community Craftwork

A social enterpirse driven to address poverty socialisolation in Cape Town’s townships, Ikamva Design, pulls together women who are members of the Ikamva Labantu NGO’s Senior Clubs. Steered by co-founders and volunteers Melanie Peterhans and Maria Matseke, and Head of their Seniors Programme, Lulama Sigasana, it works with community crafters to expand their range of designs and provide business opportunities both locally and internationally.

“Every piece is handmade, and every woman has an interesting story to
tell,” says Maria. “The experience and feel of our products are different from those mass-produced, thanks to this personal touch. Most of the women are senior citizens, now retired from a long working life. Some of them are very experienced in complicated beading, while the majority of the women do some kind of beadwork.”

TRAINING SESSIONS

Ikamva Design arranges training sessions for those women who want to further develop their beading and sewing skills. “This is an important part of our work and very much appreciated by the women. They uplift and empower each other. The training sessions are essential for them, but
it also makes us expand our product range. We believe training has a greater impact outside Ikamva Design. We touch many people from different areas, and these women teach others in their areas. By training, we can create even more jobs,” she adds.

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, members met every day and worked together in safe spaces. The programme creates opportunities that generate extra income, making a real difference to households. This provides freedom, dignity, and independence to families by helping to meet basic needs and a more stable upbringing for their children and grandchildren.

“Many older persons in South Africa live in extreme poverty and support large families on their pension of R1 890 per month. The grandmothers are very often the sole breadwinner
in the household. They are also usually the primary caregivers of the grandchildren and

share their meagre pension by feeding each and every person in their homes. They also instil a sense of belonging to, pride in, and knowledge of their roots. They are strong and beautifully spirited women, and they are raising the next generation.”

Order a bespoke item, or request a tailor-made piece.
Call +27 (0) 60 807 8216, or e-mail maria@ikamva.co.za, www.ikamva.org/ikamva-design