Unemployed women make a difference in their community

Tsakani – Unemployed women from Tsakani came together eight years ago to help create employment in their area.
They formed the Dimamazi Multipurpose Cooperative, an association designing tailored school uniforms for three local schools.
Eight years later, the cooperative is still up to the task with six permanent members.
Member Anna Sibisi said after realising people spend a lot of money on school uniforms for their children they wanted to teach people to learn the skill of sewing.
She said one of their main challenges was not having an embroidery machine.
“We are forced to seek service from external service providers.
“Acquiring our own machine would make our lives better.
“Another challenge is doing business while complying with Covid-19 regulations.
“We are behind with work because during the hard lockdown we could not operate,” she said.
Another member of the cooperative, Sibusisiwe Duze, said through the years they’ve had problems in attracting customers to the project.
“We initially struggled to get funding and had to dig deep into our pockets to keep the cooperative running.
“We had to market ourselves at schools and also expanded our services to include traditional wear so we can make ends meet,” said Duze.
Duze added they are looking to attract more clients.
“If we have more schools using our services, we will be able to employ more people in the area,” she said.