Kubaje's story
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Meet Kubaje
"My name is Kubaje. I am 46 and I have six children. I am part of the Nakolo-Savio women's group. Two years ago, Tree Aid brought us the Grow Hope project.”
With her family relying on her to provide food and income, Kubaje said, “I have to find a way to make ends meet, at all costs.” But this isn't always easy.
Before the project
“We produce shea butter that we send to market to sell to make income. Previously, shea butter production was very difficult because we have to crush the nuts one after the other, which is time-consuming. After crushing, we have to take it to the mill which is very far away from here.”
But processing and selling shea butter didn't always make her enough money to provide for her family. “Things were really very difficult for us… there were times that it was difficult for us to find food to eat.”
"There were times that it was very difficult for us to eat in the house. When I am unable to find food for my children, it makes me worry about where the next meal will come from and it disturbs me a lot."
Since joining the project
“When the project started we were sensitised about the importance of trees and the need for us to protect those trees. We were also trained as to how to protect the environment from further destruction and how to save the little resources that we have.
We have also benefited from shea butter quality training. The training helped me to do an analysis of how much cost I incur in producing my shea butter so at the end of the day I will know how much profit I am making so I can buy food.”
Looking to the future
"The training has changed our attitudes towards the environment and we protect the trees now. All these changes have brought me a lot of respect, not only to me but also to other group members.
What I hope for the future is that we can provide for our basic needs and everything that we hope for will be available to the family."
