Brief History

In 1996, an new, different idea to establish an orphan care project in rural Natisa was brought forward by a group of local people in Natisa. With their families torn apart by HIV/AIDS, poverty, unemployment, inflation, the Natisa people wished not for an orphanage but for a way in which orphans and grief stricken families could be brought together and find joy with one another. The Natisa villagers' sincere and applicable vision gradually caught up the rural community of Natisa and in 2004, Sethule was invited by the local community to work with them.

In 2005 Sethule Orphans' Trust was establised. Its headquarters are located in Natisa Matopo 70 km from Bulawayo. Sethule Orphans' Trust is a project bringing a orphan and a family together. Sethule focuses on orphan care and bereavement counselling programmes in some of the poorest rural communities of Matabeleland.

Owing to continued poor rainfall many rural communities face a constant food shortage. With help from other organisations, Sethule was able to provide a feeding centre for the orphans and those who are under 5 years old. The local communities were was asked what was foremost in their needs: unanimously they mentioned a pre-school for orphans and local children, adult literacy classes, and help with a garden project to feed the orphans. Education of both the young and old was held up as a priority, and a self-help project was envisaged that would also create employment in the rural areas.

Sethule Trust, is dedicated to helping the rural communities, and does not discriminate on religious, ethnic, or tribal backgrounds. The pilot orphans care project was duplicated to Tsholotsho, Hope Fountain and other poor rural communities. The Sethule Orphan projects have been introduced to other communities, who are encouraged to manage on their own, and demonstrate self-sustainability.