Foundation aids informal settlers
“Although things seemed to have changed with the country’s move to level 3 of the lockdown it’s really still the same and even worse in some of our vulnerable communities."
Informal settlement dwellers’ plight for food and hygiene was answered by a local foundation, Overcomer Inside Out.
“Come day one of the lockdown, people staying in the five informal settlements in the ward were out of food and jobs,” founder Sipho Mtakathi said.
She added that even the informal settlement dwellers who had the “most sustainable” form of employment also found themselves in the same boat as they were not allowed to work during level 5 of the national lockdown.
“That was a big problem so the foundation started to partner with other foundations and several donors so we could feed the people,” Mtakathi said, adding they had also managed to hand over food parcels at the informal settlements with less-fortunate households.
“Somewhere along the line we ran out of food because even the donors ran out.”
Mtakathi said that was when she and her partners decided to serve hot meals until legislation hindered them from doing so.
“That was until a submission was sent to the high court in a bid for the legislation to be scrapped,” she explained.
Mtakathi said they knew they could still assist those in the informal settlements through cooked meals even though they were no longer able to give them what was collected from donors.
“Even now, we’re still cooking because it’s still lockdown,” she said.
“Although things seemed to have changed with the country’s move to level 3 of the lockdown it’s really still the same and even worse in some of our vulnerable communities.
“Jobs are still not there and hunger is still the main issue as people won’t listen when you’re telling them to wash their hands when they are worried about their next meal.”
She said her foundation had even taught the people in the around 6 500 households in the informal settlements how to make their own masks “with he little they have”.
“We went into the settlements with materials and taught them how to make masks with the materials we left, even how to use t-shirts and rubber bands,” she said.
Mtakathi said the foundation’s work in the community, however, did not start when the lockdown was enforced.
“Before lockdown we started with crash courses on how they could wash their hands properly to prevent themselves from getting infected with the virus and even possibly spreading the virus,” she said.
Hand soap and water were also donated.
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