Close to their children who have fun at the nursery, while their mom’s work in a nearby building. Whether they are sorting team leaders, press operators or heating butter they can do so with peace of mind. They can work confidently knowing their children are well cared for by the two nannies that look after the nursery. In an agricultural region like Toussiana, structures allowing young mothers with small children to continue to work are almost nonexistent.
“This nursery is a gamechanger. It allows women in the cooperative to take charge of their own destiny and to help their children”, says Nathalie Ouattara, founder of SOTOKACC. “It’s also about personal accomplishment. Women can now continue their work after giving birth to their child and thus maintain their economic and social autonomy. And to thrive fully in their work, their personal life, their role as a mother, a woman, and much more.”
In Burkina Faso, shea butter has always been taken care of by women: they are responsible for harvesting and processing. And so they pass on expertise from one generation to the next.
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I grew up in this village. I quickly became aware of the extraordinary value of their work and shea butter, known as “women’s gold”, which has always been essential for skincare, beauty, the well-being of each and every one of us, explains Nathalie.
With this project, we thought we could go further still. This nursery is an important step for women to be able to work confidently. And balance a whole rhythm of life.”
It’s lunch time and in the nursery just next door a dozen children aged 4 months to 4 years old are playing their hearts out, with their liveliness sounding all around the cooperative.