[Translate to English:] Frau in Malawi bei der Arbeit
Our Projects

Malawi: Tea 2020

Building up a competitive tea industry

Although Malawi is one of our most important tea-growing areas for black and green tea, it is not likely the first country that comes to mind when one thinks about tea. That is precisely what we are changing: we impart knowledge on-site about all aspects of successful cultivation and advocate for living wages. In doing so, we want to help build up a competitive tea industry that provides long-term income opportunities for the local people.

[Translate to English:] Mann, lächelnd

For living wages

Established together with the Ethical Tea Partnership (ETP), our project in Malawi is directed at plantation workers and self-employed small farmers. In this Southeast African country, living wages have yet to be established, but we are working towards achieving this. Therefore, we pay a voluntary premium on the raw ingredients we buy from there so that the people working in cultivation receive a fair wage.

[Translate to English:] Arbeit auf der Teeplantage

Sustainable knowledge for small farmers

Thus far, the project has established 200 Farm Field Schools to provide people with the knowledge necessary to grow tea and other crops successfully long-term. More than 6,000 small farmers have graduated from these schools, and the knowledge acquired is paying off: 10 per cent more Malawian tea was sold in 2020 than in the previous year. In addition, we have set up savings plans with nearly 5,000 farmers – more than three-quarters of whom are women. They receive access to small loans that boost their economic freedom and, as a result, their self-confidence.

[Translate to English:] Frau und Mann lächelnd

Helping people help themselves, also in Rwanda

In Rwanda, 47 Farmer Field Schools have also passed on valuable knowledge to nearly 1,500 farmers, a third of whom are female. Ninety-two per cent of the youngest graduates were able to increase their profit over the previous year. By 2022, we want to help an additional 4,500 people improve their income.

[Translate to English:] Teepflückerinnen bei der Arbeit

Our achievements at a glance:

[Translate to English:] Farmer Field Schools-Icon

7,500 +

small farmers have attended the Farmer Field Schools

[Translate to English:] Sparschwein-Icon

approx. 5,000

have set up savings plans

[Translate to English:] Gewinnsteigerung-Icon

92 per cent

of the graduates increased their profit

Learn more about

Germany

We support initiatives and, through our Spethmann Foundation, run our own projects that serve children, adolescents, and senior citizens and support differently abled people.
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Zimbabwe

We ensure a supply of clean drinking water for 5,000 small farmers and their families in the Rosella region and support them in the transition to growing hibiscus.
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Assam

Together with the ETP and UNICEF, we have directly and indirectly improved the lives of around 250,000 women, girls and boys in Assam, one of the largest tea-growing regions in the world, since 2014.
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