President Jacob Zuma in his State of the Nation Address this year announced that this year Mandela Day would be celebrated by working to clean up the South Africa. The President encouraged all South Africans to dedicate 67 minutes of their time to clean South Africa.
The Department of Health employees will visit the Zama-Zama community to perform various tasks which includes:
- cleaning around the informal settlement
- assisting the community to establish a proper food garden
- playing soccer and netball or any other physical games with the children of the community
- playing educational games
- reading a book to the children
Volunteers are advised to:
- wear comfortable clothes and shoes
- bring gloves to protect their hands when cleaning
The department will get involved in two projects towards the commemoration of Nelson Mandela Day 2014.
- The Zama-Zama informal settlement
- The North West donkey cart project
Zama-Zama Zama-Zama is an informal settlement in Claremont, Pretoria West. The settlement consists of 80 dwellings, with each dwelling accommodating an average of four to eight people. With no running water, the community relies on a weekly delivery of water in a container. There is no electricity or proper sanitation. Some of the inhabitants have dug ‘pit-toilets’ whilst others make use of the nearby open veld.
‘Zama’ is a Zulu word that means to ‘try your luck’. This community has done so and despite their challenges, they keep their dusty streets clean and neat. Some people have planted flowers and one or two entrepreneurs have opened a small spaza-shop or repair shop. In order to ensure sustainability, the department has resolved to adopt the Zama Zama community as Nelson Mandela Day beneficiary for a period of three to five years.
The North West donkey cart project Evergreen is a regular feature in the dusty and bumpy streets of Matshepe village, near Mahikeng, in North West. It is not a bus or a taxi but a donkey cart that ferries children of the village on their 8km round trip to school every weekday. Its driver and owner, Keepile “Rockie” Sedidi, 50, built Evergreen after realizing that children were walking long distances to school. He transports children at a cost of between R80 and R100 a month per child. The cart has wooden and steel benches while some of the children sit on empty beer and cool-drink crates, which make the journey uncomfortable for children; especially in rainy and cold seasons. Voluntary cash donations of R67 a person would go a long way in making the children’s journey to school more comfortable.
People who wish to donate clothes, books, tinned food and garden implements should contact: Ms Ria Gobler, Tel No: (012) 395-8496, E-mail: GroblR@health.gov.za Or Ms Sanelisiwe Mbhele, Tel No: (012) 395-8384, E-mail: MbhelS@health.gov.za
