45 000 residents of low cost housing settlements across South Africa will benefit from this and over 900 residents of the beneficiary communities will receive training and stipends as community based educators going door to door to spread climate change and greening awareness.

FTFA’s Trees for Homes programme, which has planted over 750 000 fruit and indigenous trees to date and trained and given stipends to 7 500 community educators, spreads awareness of the need to conserve, plant and maintain trees, upholding the United Nations’ aim for this International Year of Forests, which is to raise awareness on sustainable management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests. The NLDTF initiative will result in an estimated 1 125 hectares of urban forest planted.

In addition to improving the environments in which these 45 000 residents live, these trees will sequestrate a very conservative estimate of 25 385 tons of carbon dioxide, thus mitigating climate change as well.

“The NLDTF is supported by the people of South Africa through the National Lottery. We are glad that the people of South Africa can contribute to reforestation of our country. We hope that the communities take ownership of the project to ensure the survival of the urban forests,” said Prof Alfred Nevhutanda, Chairperson of the National Lotteries Board.

The first NLDTF distribution of 500 trees took place on 14 February in Polokwane. Further tree distributions in the Polokwane area took place on 15 and 16 February in Seshego and were very well received by the recipient communities.

Distribution events are scheduled to take place in Khutsong and Wedela, in the North West on the 18 and 19 February respectively.

“We are delighted to have been chosen as the beneficiaries of this wonderful project, it will bring much needed greening to the area as well as education, skills and short term employment for some of the residents, thank you Food & Trees for Africa, thank you National Lottery,” commented Khutsong local Councillor, Lindiwe Sibiya.

Other beneficiary communities who will receive Trees for Homes in the coming months include Cosmo City and Alexandra in Gauteng, Mdantsane in the Eastern Cape, Phuthaditjhaba in the Free State, France, near Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu Natal, Delmas in Mpumalanga, Galeshewe in the Northern Cape and Khayalitsha in the Western Cape.

For more information or to attend any of the NLDTF Trees for Homes distribution events, contact Joanne Lee Rolt on 011 656 9802/3 or joanne@trees.org.za.