Media Release: Garden Route District Municipality acknowledges local humanitarians on World Humanitarian Day

For Immediate Release
19 August 2020

World Humanitarian Day is held every year on 19 August to acknowledge aid workers who risk their lives in humanitarian service, and to come together and provide support to people affected by crises around the world.

This year, World Humanitarian Day comes as the world continues to recover from COVID-19 pandemic. According to the United Nations (South Africa) aid workers are overcoming unprecedented access obstacles to assist people in humanitarian crises around the world.

Providing the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic affects the livelihoods of people throughout the globe, the Garden Route District Municipality acknowledges that fighting the spread of the virus is not possible without the help of heroes. These heroes either provide healthcare to infected patients, provide meals and/or essentials to the vulnerable. These role players include:

• medical staff;
• non-governmental organisations;
• faith-based organisations;
• private sector;
• environmental health practitioners;
• government organisations; and
• the media who creates awareness of the dangers and risks of the COVID-19 virus within our communities, to name a few.

Food security heroes in the Garden Route

One such hero is Ms Magdalene Moos from Concordia (part of the Knysna Municipal area), who operates as one of 64 soup kitchens that, with the help of donors, reach out to the vulnerable members of society in her area of service. Ms Moos went as far as to create her own vegetable garden to ensure the sustainability of the initiative.  She said: “We reached a point where we now feed a total of 1500 persons per week and the highest number of persons reached so far were 401 per day. Meals are also directly delivered to the elderly in the area to spare them the inconvenience of waiting in queues”. She also emphasised: “We cannot only feed kids and the elderly; we feed any person that reach our doorstep who needs a meal. “None of this is possible without donations that we continuously receive from donators such as Ms Sharon Dreyer, Ms Sam Loerie, Mr Johan Gerber and the Knysna Rotary Club, as well as Maxwell 20, an organisation who donates nutritious porridge that we serve to the kids on a daily basis.”

In the Klein-Karoo is Mr Jaco Matthee, a community volunteer who runs his own soup kitchen and delivers food hampers to vulnerable residents of the Oudtshoorn area.  With this initiative he reaches residents of Bridgton and also donates food hampers to the Family and Marriage Society of South Africa (FAMSA) organisation in the area with donations received from Cape Karoo International.  Mr Matthee said:  “With this initiative we are able to provide soup to 400 persons per week and donate food hampers to 10 households per week”. Adding to this, he said:  “Not all of us are in a position to provide for our families during this difficult time. There are many people struggling to make ends meet, but we must start within our immediate surroundings; starting with our neighbours. “If we all contribute to others, we can make our society a better place,” he said. Working in the hospitality industry, Mr Matthee said, “it is important that we help our communities, as it is these communities that keep our businesses open with their support, therefore it is important that business plough back to them”.

In the area of Bitou, the Sinethemba Soup Kitchen is also an unsung hero for the residents of Kwanokuthula, where they feed 150 residents from phases 3, 4 and 5 of Ward 6 per day.  Ms Phumeza Ndukwana, said: “We are a team of five who work full-time to ensure that vulnerable members of our community are fed for 4 days per week (Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays)”.  She added: “People arrive at our facility in numbers which is an indication that our communities are struggling”.  The soup kitchen provides meals to children and adults, including elderly and those with disabilities. They ensure that all safety protocols are adhered to when serving their community. “One must have the passion for the community to be in this position and not expect something in return; however we need people that are reliable to make sure that the service is running effectively,” she concluded. Ms Ndukwana also gave recognition to Ms Shirley Redman from Bitou who continuously donates various food products, vegetables and other essentials to ensure that they continue to help the needy of Kwanokuthula.

All these efforts and initiatives, despite the odds, make a difference in the lives of many. It is due to this that the country has lost less lives than predicted.  While honouring these heroes, the GRDM also pays tribute to the lives of all health workers and other essentials workers who have lost their lives while rendering an essential service during these pressing times. May each soul rest in peace.

ENDS