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Deaf people are among the vulnerable strata in Congo-Brazzaville. The Challenge futura foundation has decided to train them in myciculture. They learn to cultivate mushrooms to become entrepreneurs and ensure their empowerment.
In the scientific city of Brazzaville, in the heart of a natural forest, behind a mushroom farm still being assembled, a deaf man turns and turns wood chips with the help of a shovel. The chip is this material that he uses with his colleagues. They mix it with wheat bran, flour, corn and mycelium to produce mushrooms.
Production is a process of which pasteurization is the last step. It is explained here by Dieu Merci Doubou, the trainer for the hearing impaired: “ It is regarding pasteurization which consists in neutralizing the competing micro-organisms with the mycelium, to avoid competitors when we are going to do the larding. It is at this level that it is necessary to significantly reduce these pathogenic organisms or micro-organisms which are present, so that they do not interfere with the growth of the mycelium. »
It was during the training that Dieu Merci Doubou discovered the adaptability of the hearing impaired: ” They have enormous potentialities that some able-bodied people do not have. We thought regarding training them because they are people we can value. »
At the pilot farm, oyster mushrooms are already growing. They are watered, harvested and sold. The quantity is certainly even less important, but the objective of the Challenge futura foundation is to give these vulnerable girls and boys the tools to make them great entrepreneurs. ” There will be a lot of support in terms of personal development, indicates the engineer Tsengué-Tsengué, first person in charge of the foundation. There will be management training. There will also be support in commercial terms; then relations with the public authorities. We want them to succeed. »
Nathan Kianguébéné is one of those trained. He would like other partners to join forces with the Challenge futura foundation to promote large-scale training: “ To do a good job, we need materials. You yourselves know that we people living with disabilities are among the vulnerable. It means that we have a lot of needs. »
The hearing impaired became mushroom producers following two weeks of training. But, the initiation to entrepreneurship will require more time and significant investments, according to the trainers.
