Partners Worldwide
Partners Worldwide (PW) aspires to end poverty so that all may live a life of hope and abundance. PW was started several decades ago in response to the question, “How can businesspeople become involved in the work of ending poverty around the world?”
PW builds partnerships that align local community institutions with business volunteers who provide business training, mentoring and access to capital to create flourishing economic environments around the world including Eswatini, Africa.
Jim Louwsma
P&G Alumni Grant Champion
Jim Louwsma
28 years at P&G in U.S. Sales/CBD
Jim has been active as a volunteer Business Associate for Partners Worldwide for the past 17 years. He has been the catalyst for some of PW’s most impactful partnerships in Eswatini, Mozambique and South Africa. His work includes volunteering as a business and leadership mentor in Southern Africa, being a financial supporter and engaging other professional and technical volunteers. He continues to play a significant role in PW’s global leadership development and has volunteered hundreds of hours advising PW.
“I have chosen to be involved because of PW’s unwavering commitment to use the talents of local businesspeople to address poverty at its roots – through market-driven, sustainable models of economic and business development.” Jim Louwsma
The Honey Value Chain Project expands the work being done for the rural poor in Eswatini, Africa. It will help subsistence farmers improve productivity by adding or expanding the honey farming capacity to their current farming operations.
Through a partnership with the local institution, AfricaWorks Swaziland (AWS), PW initially funded and provided 1,000 new beehives, for which farmers paid out of sales revenue, as well as provided agricultural and honey-making ‘best practice’ expertise.
In its first year, this project helped create and sustain 300 honey farms. PW is now supporting the project’s extension for the next four years, with a goal to support 300 new honey farms annually. Importantly, and with program sustainability in mind, repayments to AWS by the supported bee farmers has created a revolving fund to finance additional beehives, extend the value of grant funds and expand the impact of the project.
Learn more about PW by watching this video: An intro to Partners Worldwide – YouTube
The $20,000 grant will be used to help grow the businesses of the 300 farmers who participated in the first year program. Furthermore, it will allow AWS to expand the program to an additional 300 by building / providing 750 beehives, 600 bee-swarm trap boxes, 300 bee smokers, and 300 bee suits.
Grant funds will additionally help purchase technical equipment needed to optimize honey harvest and quality, as well as support travel expenses and on-site costs for AWS trainers in their work with farmers. At least 600 farmers will be trained and help support 600 jobs, with a community impact of more than 4,000 people.
“Un-Bee-lievable Success”
Grace operates an apiary with 8 bee hives which are integrated with an orchard of mango, avocado and lemon fruit trees. The bees assist the fruit trees with cross pollination. She receives all technical training in beekeeping from AWS and is a beneficiary of two hives funded by the grant from P&G Alumni Foundation. All her honey is purchased, processed and brought to major national markets by AWS, and Grace has been able to use the additional proceeds from the honey to buy food and clothes, and pay school fees.
“I am grateful to AfricaWorks for introducing me to bee keeping as this has resulted in my orchard fruit trees increasing yield, quality and income. The training in beekeeping practice from AfricaWorks has also resulted in the production of high quality, high yield raw honey.” ~Grace, Farmer and Bee Keeper