Bulembu is a small town located in northwestern Hhohho,

Eswatini Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its ...

, 10 km west of the town of Piggs Peak and close to the border with

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

. Located above the Komati Valley in Eswatini's Highveld, Bulembu is named after the siSwati word for a spider's web. The town of Bulembu is privately owned by a not-for-profit, Bulembu Ministries Eswatini. The Bulembu Foundation is based in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

Background

Between 1939 and 2001, Bulembu operated as a

chrysotile Chrysotile or white asbestos is the most commonly encountered form of asbestos, accounting for approximately 95% of the asbestos in the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor (2007)29 C.F.R.&n ...

(white asbestos) mine. Originally named Havelock Mine, the mine was part of the UK's Turner & Newall Asbestos Group. The mine encountered heavy losses in the late 1980s and subsequently went bankrupt in 1991. The company was liquidated and the assets purchased in 1991 by HVL Asbestos Swd. Ltd. who changed the name of the mine to Bulembu Mine. HVL Asbestos ran the mine until it went into liquidation in 2001. Upon liquidation the 10,000 residents of Bulembu soon deserted the town in search for employment elsewhere and the town became a ghost town with little more than 50 people remaining there. This was during the time that

was (as it continues to be) ravaged by the

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

virus. There was a 900% increase in infection in one decade with the infection rate sitting at 3.9% in 1992 to 38.6% in 2002. Today over 40% of the population is infected and the result is a nationwide orphan crisis. The assets were purchased by Bulembu Development Corporation who sold the town and its 1,700-hectare property in 2006 to a not-for-profit, Bulembu Ministries Swaziland. Bulembu was purchased with the plan to rejuvenate the town as a self-sustaining entity with enterprises and care for orphans. Bulembu Ministries Swaziland created a number of

sustainable Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livin ...

enterprises in 2008 to 2009, such as a eucalyptus and pine plantation for timber and charcoal, honey, bottled water, bakery, dairy, mill and tourism. By November 2009 there were 108 orphans under Bulembu Ministry Swaziland's care. Instead of living in an institutional orphanage each child lives in a home with a caregiver and a group of five other children. Approximately 70% of Bulembu's orphan care program is funded through child sponsorship. Sponsors send funds each month to provide support for the sponsored children.

References

External links

Official Website
- Bulembu Ministries Swaziland {{Authority control Populated places in Hhohho Region Eswatini–South Africa border crossings