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The short movie clip above probably the best way for us to show just a bit of what happens at the ITERILENG PROJECT in the very rural area of Bushbuckridge in the Northern Province of South Africa.


		'Iterileng' means 'we help ourselves' and this is exactly what Dina Monareng and about 50 other women are doing. In some cases these women are the only breadwinners of extended families. In order to be able to earn a living without having to leave home for cities where jobs are more readily available, these ladies have found a way to generate an income while watching the kids at play. The project kicked off when Dina Monareng, under the guidance of Ronel Swart of Africa Silks, secured financial aid from America.
This aid was used to obtain an empty stand in the village, where a building was erected. A committee of seven was elected to assist Dina and they purchased 25 spinning wheels and were supplied with boiled off silkworm cocoons by Africa Silks.
The group comes together daily to spin beautiful rough textured yarns which are supplied to Africa Silks for weaving, in exchange for payment calculated according to mass. This, in turn, solves a serious problem for Africa Silks in that about three spinners are required to produce enough yarn for each weaver. At the weavery of Africa Silks this takes up a huge part of valuable space which can now be occupied by more weavers. Dina is a very industrious woman, and whenever possible, she allocates a bit of their profit towards purchasing another spinning wheel. This she then donates to a more remote village where she teaches someone the skills of spinning. Thereby starting a chain of similar groups on a smaller scale
		The Iterileng Project has proved so successful, that a R100 000.00 grant has been made by South African Breweries. Some of these funds were used to buy weaving looms and a few of the Bushbuckridge ladies are now being trained in the art of weaving, by Africa Silks. Watching these women, pedaling their spinning wheels while singing along, is a heartwarming experience. Children play around and are even breast fed when necessary. Up to 50 spinners arrive daily to ensure that, at latest count, 361 children in their extended families can be fed and clothed.
Below is Dina surrounded by her 7 committee members.

A group of spinners enjoying the photography session.

The group has recently started dyeing some of the silks. Very primitive methods are being used, as can be seen on the pictures below