This story is, at its core, about connection and collaboration. Networks unlock partnerships, leverage skills, and amplify impact across communities. When we link individuals and communities through shared goals and resources, we create resilient futures. We drive sustainable growth.
These aren’t buzz words. We see it happen every day and it remains inspiring to see how the dots connect and journeys converge – and not coincidentally, but because that was always the plan. That’s the heart of Ranyaka’s model. Behind every dot, every person, there is a story.
In this particular story, we have Basil the dynamic business owner and horticulturalist from Stellenbosch, spearheading an exciting new initiative that links up with Ranyaka’s Land and Property programme. Then we have the beneficiary small-scale farming businesses: Uncle Joey from Chicago, Paarl, shares openly how growing his food garden has given him a new lease on life, not only helping him to overcome a life of addiction, but becoming a changemaker in his community. Uncle James, also from Chicago, is bound to a wheelchair, but doesn’t allow that to keep him from tending to his precious plants.
Joey Erasmus, Orleansvale Primary School food garden, Chicago, Paarl
From the community of Kylemore just outside Stellenbosch, Principal Klara and her supportive husband, Neville, run an Early Childhood Development centre and plough the proceeds from their garden back into their ECD centre. Babalwa and the formidable team from Abalimi Bezekhaya in Khayelitsha township work to produce a harvest of hope for their community.
The EPJ Kleinboerdery team from Klapmuts with Ranyaka’s Johan Olivier
Klapmuts farmers, Jeremy, Pieter, Eron and Jacobus, the committed team at EPJ Kleinboerdery, started their journey with Ranyaka in 2023, volunteering their time to refurbish a food garden at an ECD centre and have since been onboarded onto our Land and Property programmes. And these are only a handful of the green fingered champions who are now participating in an exciting six-month journey that is bound to unlock a lasting harvest.
Uncle Neville from Kylemore supports his wife, Klara, in running her ECD centre, Kleine Diamantjies. They are working on establishing a food garden on the premises to support their school. The first veggie tunnel on the property was donated by Nedbank.
When journeys converge
Three years ago, Basil Williams, the founder of Herbal View Hydroponics in Stellenbosch, joined the Nedbank-funded Ranyaka Building Business programme. Because of Basil’s extensive expertise in agriculture, particularly in horticulture and sustainable practices, he subsequently became a valued partner for Ranyaka’s broader Land and Property programme – one of ten programmes that Ranyaka is implementing nationally under the banner of the Nedbank Proud of my Town programme.
Basil Williams, founder of Herbal View Hydroponics, in action in the first training session at the CoCreate Hub
Fast forward to 2024, and Basil is now working with Ranyaka to lead a project that empowers small-scale farmers from four gardens in Ranyaka’s Food Network in the Western Cape. Earlier this year, Basil set up the Herbal View Agricultural Training Centre (HVATC) as the non-profit leg of Herbal View Hydroponics, along with fellow directors Raymond Brinkhuis from Leirolac and Lindsay Vermeulen from Bookkeepers Cape Town. Thanks to funding from the Industrial Development Corporation, HVATC is now running a six-month development programme for small-scale farmers in collaboration with Ranyaka.
This partnership showcases how combining networks and skills can address community needs, boost local food security, and drive economic growth.
Growing thriving businesses
The first group of 20 small-scale farmers started their training at the CoCreate Hub in Stellenbosch on 19 June 2024. Hailing from Klapmuts and Kylemore in Stellenbosch, Chicago in Paarl and Khayelitsha township in Cape Town, the farmers are being equipped with the know-how and tools for sustainable farming, focusing on hydroponic techniques in small greenhouses. Besides the technical skills, the programme covers essential business skills like management, costing, pricing, marketing, and community engagement.
The first cohort of small-scale farmers from four communities in the Western Cape at the CoCreate Hub, Stellenbosch
Financial education sessions, supported by Nedbank, add to the programme’s value, ensuring the farmers can sustain their businesses long-term.
Each garden will also be equipped with an IDC-sponsored greenhouse tunnel complete with planting bags, trellising, hydroponics systems, and seedlings. Herbal View Hydroponics will oversee the installation, provide on-site planting guidance, and offer ongoing mentoring to help these farmers build sustainable businesses.
Access to market changes the game
What sets this initiative apart is Herbal View Hydroponics’ existing agreements with buyers across the Western Cape to supply herbs and vegetables. Not only will these 20 farmers learn to grow sustainably, but Herbal View will also buy their produce, giving them immediate market access.
For many, if not most, small-scale farmers who are not able to produce at the type of scale that satisfies the demands of local and national buyers, access to market can prove to be an insurmountable obstacle in the path to success. The Herbal View Hydroponics supply chain opens a world of opportunity to the farmers participating in this programme – and we are incredibly excited to see the harvest of economic growth and the further unlocking of resources that this journey will bring!
Big picture perspective unlocks sustainability
As we continue to roll out our land and property programme nationally, the fundamental lesson emerges time and again: For true sustainable development, a holistic approach is crucial. Enterprise development programmes need to go beyond mere capacity building and occasional financial support.
Long-term success requires strong networks, market access, and investment in the overall ecosystem that supports businesses and ultimately, produces a thriving economy that will ensure the well-being of our nation.
Neville and Klara – the proud owners of Kleine Diamantjies Early Childhood Development centre – an ECD centre which also forms part of the Nedbank-funded Proud of my Town ECD programme in Stellenbosch and which is now also part of Ranyaka’s Land & Property programme.
About Ranyaka
Ranyaka Community Transformation runs a variety of programmes in 31 communities across eight provinces. As the implementation agents for the Nedbank Proud of my Town (PoMT) banner, we roll out these interconnected programmes that together, all form part of a larger community development framework aimed at strengthening local communities.
Whether it is Building Business, Early Childhood Development, Land and Property, Community Safety, or any of the other 10 Ranyaka programmes, they are not isolated efforts. They work together, using each other’s successes and resources to amplify impact across the board.
About Basil Williams
Basil Williams brings over 28 years of experience in horticulture and agriculture to the HVATC initiative. With a Diploma in Horticulture, Basil started his career at the Elsenburg Agricultural Research Centre and founded Herbal View in 1998. His expertise in growing herbs, vegetables, and salads organically and sustainably is the foundation of the programme.
Herbal View Hydroponics started in a backyard in Kylemore as a community initiative for job creation and skills development. Since 1998, the company has grown, supplying herbs to local wine farms, restaurants, fruit and veg delis, and supermarkets in the Cape Winelands district. The company is also launching an e-Commerce portal and currently employs 10 permanent staff and 5 seasonal workers.
Herbal View products are available at the CoCreate Hub, an economic development hub where locals and visitors can buy local products. In fact, Basil was one of the first local business owners to be onboarded as a vendor at the CoCreate Hub – an initiative that forms part of Ranyaka’s Building Business programme, supporting over 40 local businesses by providing market access in the town of Stellenbosch.
Basil Williams, founder of Herbal View Hydroponics
For more information, contact Basil Williams at basil@herbalview.co.za. To learn more about Ranyaka’s work, email admin@ranyaka.co.za.
Land & Property is one of 10 programmes that Ranyaka implements in communities across South Africa. Ranyaka is the official implementation agent of the Nedbank Proud of my Town programme.
Images by Lizelle Lötter Photographer