Eswatini Kitchen

Eswatini Kitchen was established in 1991 in Swaziland by Manzini Youth Care (MYC), a Salesian NGO supporting marginalized youth in the country. The main objective was to create employment for disadvantaged women, provide a market for small local farmers and rural families who harvested wild fruit (especially guava and marula). The profit generated was to be destined to fund Manzini Youth Care's social programmes. The project started with 5 women that worked in a one room kitchen and covered every part of the production process. Within two years the project was breaking even and reaching its goal of employing disadvantaged women. Through the support of an Australian volunteer that helped set up the project, Jo Edward-Cole, Eswatini Kitchen managed to get its first important international order from Oxfam Australia: a full pallet of jars! Eswatini Kitchen added new staff extending the team to nine.