A Schaapkraal man has taken it upon himself to better the lives of children in his community.
Brian Keet, 59, says with the help of local businesses, he and his wife came up with a project to create jobs in the area, and are now busy building a restaurant and coffee shop, and have also launched a sustainable farming project to grow food.
“We decided to start a project not only to feed the children of the community and surrounding areas, but also creating jobs,” Brian explains.
He is currently leasing a 4 000 square metre plot and phase one of the building project has already neared completion.
“This facility is to feed the children and community and to change a whole generation’s outlook on life. We’re looking to launch this programme by the end of April,” Brian adds.
Chairman of the Schaapkraal Community Forum, Redaa Ameeroedien, has come on board and believes the project will be far-reaching.
“This programme is to uplift our youth. The construction of the centre for building is being done by locals, and those that will be working here will also be locals from the community.
“So, we’ve already started with our job creation,” Ameeroedien says.
He will be heading up the farming side of the programme and says he is looking forward to inspiring and teaching youth about future farming.
“Future farming is a long-term solution to farming and to ensure the sustainability of food or crops, bearing in mind climate change, water struggles and other external factors.”