Grinding Mill Project

This community development project has proved highly successful in provided employment and sustainable support to the surrounding community

Sponsored with the generosity and love of Delphine Archer and her family, the Grinding Mill was established late in 2010 and has been fully operational since 2011.

This income generating project creates a community meeting point to further generate sales of vegetables from the LCV Garden and bread from a planned brick pizza oven

Local farmers no longer need to travel long distances on foot to grind their grains and there has been a reduction in costs for mill charges for the Lirhanzo Children’s Village.

As a bonus it provides employment for our older orphans.

Grinding mill operators have been employed and trained on the job and are learning the basics of engines and their daily maintenance and care.

Other positive benefits include reduced operating costs for the Lirhanzo Children’s Village and as a flow on, for the teaching staff at the school and the families who work at the village they are now able to now grind their maize and wheat for free.

It’s only a small incentive but reduces the time spent travelling long distances to other far away mills which in turn saves them money.

Accountability is important to AFADU and LCV.

Financial management systems for mill revenue have been introduced with a paper ticketing and receipt process.

AFADU receives quarterly reports on the Grinding Mill and its output levels and 496 buckets were ground between July and September 2011. 36 were for LCV home and 18 for LCV staff and teachers.

The project is able to cover all wages and running costs and the profit produced goes directly to LCV to support the needs of the children living there.

I think that all will agree that this project is now working and the growing problems are sorted.

The community is now dependent on this project and quickly complains if the mill is not running.

Eliphas is the best miller we have had and he is here to stay.

He is very good with the public, always very friendly, never complains and knows how to take care of the mill.

From May 2013 to April 2014 we made a total profit of $846.70 – most of this went to both LCV orphanage and the school.

We are keeping 10% of the profit each month to pay for maintenance and repairs.

We have finished harvesting both sorghum and maize.

We expect lots more grinding this year as people had bigger harvests”

– Ezelle Schimper