War on virus stigma

EMPOWERMENT: STATE ‘WORKS WITH VARIOUS PLAYERS AGAINST PANDEMIC’

Move to ensure food parcels reach right people and there was no corruption.

The government and several foundations of ANC stalwarts have undertaken to work very closely together to fight the impact of Covid-19 – and the parties highlighted the need to deal with the growing stigmatisation of the pandemic.

It was resolved that collaboration must be expanded to include other civil society organisations beyond the foundations. The government agreed to provide a platform for civil society to collaborate with line departments and municipalities in their work.

“We will never be able to do what we do without the collaboration from various players,” said Phumla Williams, director-general for the Government Communications and Information Services.

This was part of deliberations during a Zoom discussion addressed by Deputy Minister in the Presidency Thembi Siweya and attended by senior representatives of the Nelson Mandela Foundation, the Oliver and Adelaide Tambo Foundation, Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, Thabo Mbeki Foundation and Walter and Albertina Sisulu Foundation.

Siweya said the government would continue to consult and work with various players against the coronavirus. They would ensure food parcels reached the right people and there was no corruption.

“When the vaccine is found, we would like it to be cheaper and easily accessible,” Siweya said.

The participants observed that the stigmatisation of the virus was growing.

Nelson Mandela Foundation chief executive Sello Hatang said they encountered a situation in Soweto where a family was stigmatised by the community when a mother tested positive for the virus.

Community members avoided the little children who were left alone when their mother was sent for quarantine, although the kids were negative.

Zengiwe Msimanga from the Tambo foundation said the organisation had initiated a campaign dealing with stigma around the virus.

The foundation had launched a project in five sites, including a local clinic and school at Oliver Tambo’s birthplace, Nkantolo in the Eastern Cape.

The Mandela, Sisulu and Kathrada foundations were very involved in food parcel distribution. Hatang said they assisted with provision of boreholes in Limpopo and mobile toilets for schools in KwaZulu-Natal and planned to empower local economies such as spazas and tuck shops.

Ntsiki Sisulu, of the Sisulu Foundation, suggested that as the pillar of their programme was health and nutrition, the food being given to people needed to be of high standard.

They recruited youth from a Rugby Academic as advocates for Covid-19 safety protocols at their homes and community, while the Kathrada Foundation helped in food parcel distribution in Soweto and Orange Farm.

The Thabo Mbeki Foundation chief executive, Max Bowen, had identified 19 000 school children from 55 worst performing schools for the dissemination of technology teaching and learning and would introduce agriculture programmes.

When the vaccine is found, we would like it to be cheaper and accessible