Bathabile has implemented various projects to assist these families escape this destructive cycle:
The Home Makeover Project
All of the families we assist live in shacks that have been thrown together with whatever materials they have been able to scavenge. Often, they don’t have any furniture or blankets and so they sleep on the floor with their children. Winter and the rainy season are especially difficult times for these families as their shacks don’t offer proper shelter from the elements.
This project aims to improve living conditions by building proper zozo huts and providing the families with necessary appliances like mini fridges (for the storage of ARVs), as well as proper stove tops and heating appliances (to help prevent shack fires). We also assist with mattresses, bedding, chairs and other furniture that help make their zozo hut a proper home.
The Assist a Granny/Child Headed Household Project
In South Africa, it is estimated that 40-60% of orphans live in grandmother-headed households. An analysis of the General Household Survey (GHS) 2005 indicates that there were about 118,500 children living in a total of 66,500 child-headed households across South Africa at the time of the survey.
This project aims to get companies, departments, clubs, church groups or individuals to assist these particular families with regards to food, clothing, school fees or emotional support.
Food Parcels
For many of the families in the squatter camps, regular meals are something they dream of. We aim to assist with food parcels so that they have the energy and motivation to fight HIV, and rise above their current impoverished situations.
Skills Development and Job Creation
While keeping families alive and healthy is a priority, making people dependant on charity is not sustainable for the community and disempowers the people who come to rely on our assistance.
Many of the people we assist have education levels that vary from a Grade 7 (standard 5) to a Grade 12 (Matric) qualification. For those who matriculated, studying further was never an option due to their extreme poverty.
Through skills development and job creation, we hope to empower these families to the point where they are earning and income and supporting their families. We hope that this empowerment will also give them a sense of self worth and confidence, which they have been robbed of for far too long.
Some women get trained how to sew and we supply them with a sewing machine with which to earn an income. Other men are trained in tiling or building but don’t have their own equipment. We assist them with this and then request that they train other squatter camp dwellers so that they can also earn a living.
All these projects require ongoing funds and support to run. Any assistance will be greatly appreciated, and will enable us to make a difference.
For each family we are able to assist, there are thousands more who desperately need our help. With your help, we hope to be able to expand our reach while we uplift, empower and set free those who are imprisoned by their circumstances.
