Greenhouse frame for PEKA

The Rotary Club of Bowen Island has been a supporter of the development of a new orphanage near the town of PEKA in northern Lesotho, Africa. The following is a report of current developments by Peter Kirstein, Co-Director of Beautiful Gate Orphanage (the organization developing the PEKA facility).

Peka Project Update.
Peter Kirstein, April 2026.

1. Electrification.
   The Lesotho Electricity Company was paid M121,253.62 on 27th November 2025 to supply the Peka site with power. This has still not happened as they claim that there is a big backlog of installations that could not be completed as they were struggling to obtain material from South Africa. We have written to LEC requesting them to let us know what the hold up is and when the installation will happen and as yet have not received any response. Mme Lindiwe and I are planning to visit their head office to see if we can somehow speed up the installation process.
2. Agriculture & Greenhouses.
   Mehloli ea Lintle Agro were paid 70% deposit of M129,921.77 for a steel frame plastic covered greenhouse measuring 10m x 30m.

The frame has been constructed and is on site. The actual concreting of the stays was delayed slightly due to an extremely rainy time during this past month and the ground being flooded. We will start leveling the soil inside the structure as soon as the weather permits. Once that is complete the contractors can finish the greenhouse with the plastic covering and we can start with planting. BG Management is already in the process of hiring a Project Supervisor and labourers so that planting can happen as soon as the greenhouse construction is complete. We are thinking that we will start off by planting tomatoes.

Water Management and Irrigation.
When Mehloli ea Lintle started with the construction of the greenhouse they used their generator to power the borehole motor to pump water into the holding tank. It was found the piping from well to tank had developed several leaks along joints. Also after pumping water for approximately half to three quarters of an hour the water supply dried up and was only able to pump water again after a few hours. We have asked Mehloli ea Lintle to fix the pipe leaks and to do a borehole inspection and to build a secure manhole covering over the well and pump that can be locked. They have quoted M11,557.50 to do the above-mentioned inspection and leak fixing.

There is a water spring on the site and we believe it would be good to capture this water that is presently just running off and not being utilized at all. Mehloli ea Lintle have quoted M138,977.50 for the spring catchment.

Greenhouse Site