Annemarie:
“Why are we going here? Is it somewhere we can stay? It’s another bakery isn’t it?” Martin is non-plussed. I am having to sneak bakery visits into the schedule as we begin to squeeze our timeline a little; the end of our journey is in sight now, every day and every place we visit is being carefully decided, but this is a place I really want to see. ‘I’m sure you’ll love it and it’s not far out of our way…” I cajole.
Rhotia Valley Lodge and Children’s Home were set up by Marisa and George in 2007, with the concept from the start of developing a project that could fund itself. Now, just seven years on, they have two thriving organisations, which seem to be totally self-sustaining. The lodge itself is beautiful, tastefully designed and fitting really well into the local landscape, perched on a hillside bordering the Ngororogo Conservation Area. The tented rooms are perfect and attract a range of people who will pay for the privilege of staying in a sought after area, under canvas and yet with all the luxury of a five star setting – and with wonderful fresh bread at the table night and morning. Yes, there’s a bakery! It’s been built into the business model and provides regular loaves bought by the local community plus a wholemeal version baked for the lodge guests. The profits from the bakery fund the secondary education of the children in the Rhotia Valley home and other children from the Rhotia Valley community. The running costs of the home itself are funded by 20% of the turnover of the lodge.
Marisa greets us enthusiastically when we arrive and talks through some of the teething problems of setting up and their ideals and philosophy: They were both doctors in the Netherlands and after working in Africa wanted to do something that was a permanent positive influence with a real legacy. So they diversified, transitioning from hospitals to hospitality with a strong ethos of local involvement and engagement. It’s an impressive list of achievements in only seven years.
Early next day I explore the bakery with their wonderful Italian manager, Valerio. I meet the master baker and manager Habibu and his team, Anatol and Yusuf and watch as they deftly cut and shape the dough for two batches of loaves while we talk about the marketing of the bread with seller Ezekial. At present the most popular loaf is still the white sliced and even a diversification to add pumpkin seeds on the top wasn’t popular. The message is that to make the profits they need to fund the children’s education they had to listen to what’s in demand now and take any steps towards a healthier product very slowly. The bread is branded ‘Bread for Education’ with bags printed with this message so it’s unmistakably a purchase that will have benefits over and above any other similar products in the marketplace.
George picks up the story when we get back to lodge, he describes their scheme to incentivise the local teachers and improve standards of tuition, paying a bonus direct to teachers based on their attendance, pupil achievements and classroom facilities. And it doesn’t stop there; some of the youngsters are now reaching the point of leaving school. One wants to be a pilot but others have more local ambitions and to provide another arm to the set up, George and Marisa have developed a roadside café. It will cater to the passing tourist bus trade and will employ local youngsters, giving them a qualification and a start in the catering and tourism business, which is becoming increasingly important in the Tanzanian economy.
Today it’s George’s birthday and in the absence of a cake, Valerio, who is teaching a group of students to make a pasta sauce, decorates it with some mushrooms in the shape of his age and we all gather round for a taste and to wish George well. He deserves more plaudits, he and Marisa are creating something which is tangibly succeeding, benefiting not only the young orphans of the area but also its wider community, creating employment and motivation. Many happy returns George and thank you for sharing your story.