WINDALCo Assisting Single Mothers with Chicken Project

Several single mothers who reside near the Ewarton plant of the West Indies Alumina Company (Windalco), in St. Catherine, have been benefiting from a special home-based poultry rearing project, set up by the company some years ago.
This initiative was conceptualised to encourage the spirit of entrepreneurship among needy community members.
In an interview with JIS News, Employee and Community Relations Officer for Windalco, Denton Brown, outlines the scope of the outreach effort.
“This project really targets young unemployed women, most of whom have children who are abandoned by their fathers at an early age, and who happen to be in a precarious position. Windalco, in recognition of the circumstances faced by these persons, has over time, established various intervention programmes aimed at creating a tangible source of income for participants. We estimate that on an annual basis, we help between 25 and 30 individuals with this particular exercise,” he notes.
Mr. Brown points out that the chicken project consists of three segments.
“We begin the programme with some general training in taking care of the birds. This is done by the Jamaica Livestock Association and the Rural Agricultural Development Authority, and there is, in fact, an agreement that all the participants have to sign, as it is really a partnership between us and them. They also get 25 chickens along with 5 bags of broiler ration and also medication,” he says.
Mr. Brown notes that in phase two, the amount is actually doubled to 50 birds.
“This is six to eight weeks later. The only difference is that each participant is now required to match the input of the company as far as feed is concerned. The final phase involves the company providing 100 young birds and once again the participants have to make a contribution to broiler ration,” he adds.
Mr. Brown points out that so far, it has been a very successful programme for all the stakeholders.
“All the ladies we started with have remained with us, and in fact, we even provide an outlet for the end product through our canteen. The programme started in 1998 and so far we have assisted over 250 needy persons and in terms of cost to the company annually, it stands at about one million dollars,” he says.
A participant in the programme from Orangefield, Lois ‘Sandra’ Steele is very elated with the project.
“Windalco, through this as well as other community outreach programmes, has done a lot for the residents of this area and as a single mother with a son in college, this programme is making a difference for me,” she tells JIS News.
Miss Steele informs that she first heard about the programme through a neighbour.
“I started with my first 25 baby chicks, and I intend to go on to the next phase. In terms of rearing the birds, of course it is important for us to make sure that we maintain the best practices as it relates to having a clean feeder bottle and the giving of medicine as well as maintaining a clean saw dusted area. I strongly encourage other single mothers to try and get into this project, as it will help you in a very significant way, by helping to meet certain living expenses,” she says.
Another participant, Uda Delateybudair is also very positive about the project.
“The first time I heard about it, I made the effort to find out who was responsible for the programme and made some enquiries about getting some help, so after a while I was successful in my efforts,” she tells JIS News.
Mrs. Delateybudair indicates that being in the programme has really helped her.
“I used to do dressmaking, but because of poor eyesight I had to stop and not having an alternative source of income, this has done a lot for me. The main challenge, once the birds are ready for reaping, is to find the ideal ready market, but apart from that it is okay. I intend to continue even if it means working day and night,” she says.