I live under a baobab, don’t know much about it, but now I do!

Nearly every child in Africa knows what a baobab tree is.  Nearly child in Africa eats baobab powder.  But beyond knowing what the tree looks like and that it has a nutritious fruit, very little is generally known about their ecology.   The Little Big Baobab Book (free pdf download available here) addresses FAQ’s of baobabs.  Translated into TshiVenda and easy to read for Primary School children, the books are distributed to Primary Schools in Venda to spread the knowledge of these magnificent and important trees.

Learners in Matatani Primary School

This week Phabalelo Phori an MSc student studding baobabs at the University of Venda accompanied Dr Venter’s annual visit Primary Schools in the Niyani area of Venda.  Pabalelo gave the Grade 6 and 7 learners (aged 11 -13) a lively interactive talk on the ecology of baobabs and their commercial uses.  In addition, each child was given their own book to read and to take home.

Learners in Mukovawabale Primary School

It’s wonderful to see how excited the learners were with being given a book especially as it is on something so relevant to their lives.  As Tshifiwa Mutele says (aged 13) “I live under a baobab and don’t know much about it, but now I do”!

Learners at Mutele B Primary School

Image caption here

Dr Sarah Venter