In partnership with Glasswaters Foundation, in January – March 2024 Skills & Soup at The Hub continued to provide 100 children and adolescents in Morija and surrounding communities with weekly after-school tuition, nutritional meals and life skills.
Overview of The Hub’s Skills & Soup programming
- 100 weekly participants ranging in age from 8-18 from Morija and surrounding villages. The Hub has successfully fundraised to increase the number of participants to 125 weekly beginning in Q2.
- The participants attend the programming free of charge.
- Provides daily after-school tutoring in:
- STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) subjects led by professional teacher Thejane Malakane
- Mental health and well-being led by professional counsellor Thembekile Mokhosi
- Daily programming including sign language lessons during school holidays.
Skills & Soup in 2024 Q1
Through January – March 2024:
- 60 sessions held
- 2,400 meals served
Meals at Skills & Soup
- Prepared by Cafe Mojo, a female-owned and run business.
- Daily highly nutritious hot meal includes protein (mostly plant-based), fortified starch, and vegetables.
- Daily highly nutritious take-home ration includes 2 loaves of locally baked fortified brown bread, peanut butter, boiled egg, and fruit.
- The Hub has eliminated single-use plastic by having participants bring their own reusable containers.
Lesotho Nutrition Initiative supports 30 youngest and most food-insecure participants with highly nutritious meals 5 days/week:
- 600 meals served in Q1
- Highly nutritious meals reverse the long-term effects of malnutrition in children
Skills & Soup catering supports local businesses in Morija by purchasing:
- 200 loaves of bread from a local female-owned and run bakery weekly
- Eggs and seasonal vegetables from local farmers weekly
Skills & Soup Outreach in Q1:
- 1 outreach session at Makeneng Primary School – monthly outreach to rural, digitally excluded schools providing an introduction to coding using tablets and Scratch, as well as mental well-being lessons.
Hub Talks at Skills & Soup in Q1:
- 3 Hub Talks – monthly motivational talks by visiting entrepreneurs, artists, professionals and activists in partnership with Selibeng sa Thuto Trust.
The Hub’s garden:
- Aims to increase food security with fruit and vegetables for Skills & Soup participants to take home
- Drip irrigation system installed with support from IB Global Youth Action Fund
- 2 water tanks provided by the District Administration office of Maseru and the IB Global Youth Action Fund for rainwater harvesting in support of our climate adaptation agriculture project
Sign Language at Skills & Soup in Q1:
Sign language lessons continued in Q1, with Lineo Hlaha leading 8 sessions
Additional activities at Skills & Soup in Q1:
Bursary support for students:
The Hub is supporting 30 Skills & Soup participants with school, exam, uniform and other educational costs in 2024, with funds raised through a crowd funding campaign.
Click below to support the Given Gain crowd funding campaign:
The Hub 