Fura campaigns targets poverty and food security in Gauteng’s informal settlements

The Green Development Foundation (GDF) – an NPO focused on agriculture and the environment – has launched its new Fura campaign aimed at addressing poverty and food security.

“The focus, especially on the agricultural side was about food security. It goes without saying that the economic fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic had a lot of people out of work and a lot of households with food insecurity. That is why we called the campaign Fura, it’s a Venda word meaning ‘satisfied with food’,” said CEO Farai Mupingo.

GDF employee Lungile Shiburi advertises the shoed plants at the Rivonia Rooftop Market. Photo: Supplied

Trying to broaden their footprint, GDF made an appearance at the Rivonia Rooftop Market and the Rosebank Mall Sunday Market earlier this month as part of the campaign.

“Specialising in environmental conservation, the GDF travels around the Gauteng province and sells flowers planted in old shoes, this is an innovative way to raise funds while putting old shoes to good use. The partnership with the Rivonia Rooftop and Rosebank Sunday markets were to expand the focus area of the Fura fundraising campaign.”

He added that the focus has been on the semi-urban, rural and semi-rural market segments and to broaden their reach they visited the north to try push their campaign even further.

On 21 November, they visited the Bryanston Organic Market.

“We have identified 14 informal settlements in Johannesburg North where we are starting to aid 70 500 households,” said Mupingo.

He also said that the shoe pot plants are significant in the message they portray.

“The significance of the shoes derives from the English term ‘walk the talk’, but our version is ‘walk the hope’ as GDF is not an entity that goes out there to make promises and say things to make the people feel good, but an organisation that walks the talk and puts its money where its mouth is.”

Each shoe is R50 with a beautifully fitted plant in it. Proceeds from the campaign will benefit the needy communities in the north and the greater Joburg area.

Having received a number of old shoe donations already, the GDF would like to appeal to community members to donate their old shoes as well.

This article was republished from Sandton Chronicle with permission

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