Located in the Northern region of Ghana, there is a small town called Wa. Surrounding Wa, there are 24 communities, including women and their children. Although these women execute different economic activities, there is still a lot of poverty. Their biggest source of income is coming from the Shea trees where they pick the nuts from, this is then made into Shea butter. However, this tree is disappearing rapidly due to deforestation, because the wood is used as fuel. About eight million Shea trees are cut down every year. To ensure a good future for these women, a local social enterprise called Sommalife, is working hard for these women to establish a better and stable income. This social enterprise originates from one of the local women, called Mawuse. After she finished university, she came back to establish a better future for the rural women and their children in the communities. During this minor, International Entrepreneurship and Development, we (Cato, Hester, Marte, and Esmée) are going to help Sommalife. Our main focus will be the replanting of the Shea tree. To execute this project, we will set up one pilot nursery for three communities, which can be expanded to 15.000 seedlings per year. To ensure the sustainability of this project, we will work together with the women and use sustainable, local materials for the construction.
Visit the website of Sommalife on https://sommalife.com/ or check their insta @Sommalife
