Cllr Lloyd Phillips has pledged to help various Joburg based non-profit organisations (NPOs) fight food insecurity during August, Women’s Month.
The MMC for Economic Development recently donated tons of fresh produce to NPOs caring for venerable women and children after being inspired to boost food relief efforts in poverty-stricken communities.
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He’s pledged to visit more NPOs in the coming weeks to ascertain the kind of assistance they need from the City during the Covid-19 lockdown.
The latest beneficiaries of food donations are the New Life Centre and Bona Lesedi Centre for Disabled Adults and Children, both in Midrand, northern Joburg.
The New Life Centre provides a safe haven for children and young women subjected to drug abuse and prostitution at a young age.
Its owner, Kgopotso Nakin, says they aim to assist children who are susceptible to social ills to become responsible and respectable human beings in society.
Bona Lesedi Centre for Disabled Adults and Children, on the other hand provides information, advice and practical assistance to persons living with disabilities.
“It is remarkable to see what these homes and centres are doing to assist and care for the vulnerable women and children,” says Phillips.
The City’s Government of Local Unity has vowed to administer greater food relief during the extended national lockdown to help feed over one million households.
MMC Philips says the municipality has various levels of deprivation and food relief efforts were aimed at the most vulnerable to hunger.
“Gifting these homes with vegetables is merely a drop in the ocean. I know it’s not the solution, nor is it enough, but seeing the faces of everyone, especially the children, warms my heart,” he says.
Donated food parcels were sourced from the Joburg Market’s Food Bank, the City’s food pantry, which collects weekly donations of fresh produce from market agents and retrieves foodstuffs marked by security as unclaimed and unaccounted-for on the market floor. It also uses its allocated budget to buy fresh produce for NGOs and indigent households, meeting other donors halfway.
