February 12, 2004
By Thomas Thale
FOR people living with disabilities the Johannesburg Council of the Disabled, in the south of Lenasia, is both a workplace and a sanctuary.
It is in the serene grounds of this massive complex that the physically challenged learn to be productive and self-reliant. Just beyond the complex's gates is a place of beauty, cleanliness and tranquillity. The lawn is cut and the grounds are spotless. Cream-white in colour, with a green tiled roof, the building consists of an administration block; three contract workshops, a linen workshop, a detergent workshop and a dining hall.
The workers here carry walking sticks, use crutches, or get around in wheelchairs. "We transport many of them to the Lenz Station, where they can get public transport to ferry them home," explains Linda Pounasamy, director of the Johannesburg Council of the Disabled (JOCOD) and the only employee of the centre who is not disabled.
The centre employs 251 disabled people
What sets this group of disabled people apart, says Pounasamy, is that being able to work gives them a sense of dignity and of self-reliance.
The centre, run by JOCOD, an NGO that has worked in partnership with the City of Johannesburg since 1995, employs 251 disabled people. Johannesburg's Department of Social Services donated a R500 000 grant towards the setting up of the centre, says Valerie Govender, regional manager for social development.
JOCOD offers disabled people employment in various fields, including making linen, producing detergents, welding and manufacturing and packaging goods for any outside company, says Pounasamy. In one of the workshops employees were sitting at workstations fitting gold screws into white plastic plugs.
The centre also runs an Adult Basic Education and Training (Abet) programme.
The centrepiece of the project is its hydroponics garden, where plants are grown in a controlled environment with the soil being replaced by other growing-media. This high-yield gardening method sees plant roots being constantly fed with a nutrient solution to allow the plant to grow and flourish.
Hidden behind trellises that enclose the outdoor growing area are lush green cabbages, green beans, exotic lettuces, peppers, tomatoes, spinach and a number of herbs, mostly in containers. The vegetable garden, which supplies the Fresh Produce Market in City Deep, makes a net profit of R20 000 per month, says Pounasamy. The City provided tractors to clear and level the ground for the garden.
Another JOCOD success story is its detergent making division, which manufactures dishwashing liquid, Sta-soft and soap. Set up at a cost of R5 000 - provided by the City - the division now generates a turnover of R150 000 per month, says Pounasamy. JOCOD has also secured a contract to supply a local clinic, Lenmed, with linen.
By all accounts, JOCOD has become a self-sustaining NGO, and its employees do not have to depend on handouts. It is indeed, a viable business with a social purpose.
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