In Swaziland more than 65 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, and good income generating opportunities are hard to come by, especially in remote communities.

Gone Rural employs approximately 770 women in the remote areas of Swaziland to plait high quality homeware products from locally grown lutindzi grass. Through their engagement with Gone Rural, the women not only gain a steady income, but also access to training and HIV/AIDS awareness workshops, especially important in a country where close to 40 percent of the female population are HIV positive. Taking into consideration that each woman employed by Gone Rural supports on average 8 dependants, the social impact of Gone Rural is extensive.

Gone Rural has been a highly successful business and now operates at the top of the market in 35 countries. Their products can be found in stores in London, Paris, Tokyo and New York and have been featured in numerous homeware magazines, including Elle Decoration, a top-rated US magazine covering home improvement. For the past 5 years, they have won the Gold Medal for Best Stand at the SARCDA trade show in Johannesburg, South Africa,- and more recently Gone Rural won a capacity building award at the 2005 Pan-African Women Invent and Innovate (PAWII) competition.



The International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) Grassroots Business Initiative (GBI) is supporting Gone Rural in the following ways:

• Sales and Marketing as 98 percent of the organization's products are exported, IFC provides funding for Gone Rural's participation in trade shows, which are a critical part of the organization's marketing efforts.
• Capacity Building grant funding was provided to purchase a new trailer to transport raw materials and finished products, and hire an additional manager to free up the current manager's time to focus on export marketing.
• Working Capital funding has been provided to pay artisans upon delivery of their products to Gone Rural, rather than waiting until their customers receive and pay for the goods
• Business Planning and Technical Assistance is provided to improve Gone Rural's business processes, including the manufacturing and dying process, accounting and MIS systems, and develop the enterprise's staffing requirements.

Gone Rural recently participated in the 2007 SARCDA International Exhibition in Johannesburg, South Africa's leading gift, toy, and decor trade exhibition, taking home three awards:



- Gold Award for their display stand

- Best Display Stand Award

- and a silver medal in the International Style category

Congratulations Gone Rural!









For more information on this event, visit: www.sarcda.co.za


To find out more about Gone Rural, visit: www.goneruralswazi.com

Learn more about Gone Rural's products at Pangea Artisan Market & Cafe