Thanks to the Barclays UK grant, Mothers for All has been able to start rolling out papermaking workshops amongst our 15 active groups all over Botswana. These workshops have been very successful so far and will enable us to soon launch a whole range of additional products, such as recycled writing paper, cards, envelopes, books and gift boxes.

Product diversification is critical in maintaining a sustainable level of income potential for all our mothers, who have a range of different abilities.

The papermaking workshops have been especially enjoyed by some of our older women, who have been  struggling to make the paper beads which require a high level of finger dexterity.

Our mothers have also been experimenting with local plants in order to impart different hues to the paper products. These will be harvested in a sustainable way.

Here you can see that the papermaking process underway, from gathering the materials to mixing the pulp by hand and working with the paper frames.