VunaUtshale Butchery and Shisanyama officially opens its doors in Davel

The community of Davel came out in numbers to witness and celebrate the official opening of the VunaUtshale Butchery and Shisanyama at the old Davel Post Office on Friday, 2 November.

The butchery is part of Gert Sibande District Municipality’s (GSDM) initiative to fund and prioritise youth projects.

On various occasions, the Executive Mayor of GSDM, Mr Muzi Chirwa, highlighted the support the GSDM has been providing to a group of young entrepreneurs from Davel.

These entrepreneurs had approached GSDM in 2017, requesting assistance and support in realising their dream to open a butchery.

VunaUtshale Cooperative Unlimited was founded in 2013 and consists of six members with three of the members being female and one of them is physically challenged.

GSDM contributed to the renovation of the old vandalised post office building, currently being leased by the cooperative from Post Office South Africa.

The district facilitated the leasing process and purchased start-up furniture and equipment (tables, chairs, braai stands, tumblers, dinnerware, butchery cutlery, fridge, cleaning materials, and protective clothing).

GSDM also purchased start-up stock which included three cattle and four pigs.

The estimated total cost of GSDM’s contribution is R240 000.

The VunaUtshale Cooperative Unlimited members also received training from the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) in 2014.

In his keynote address, Mr Chirwa invited other young people in the district, who might have viable business ideas to come to the fore and present their ideas to his office.

On behalf of the VunaUtshale Cooperative Unlimited, the chairman, Mr Ernest Ngoveni, said that theirs was not an easy walk to success and it was their unwavering commitment to their vision that earned them this breakthrough.

“We would like to thank all the relevant stakeholders and encourage our peers to pursue their dreams in earnest because only they can fulfill them,” Mr Ngoveni said.