Start a Preschool for 60 Children in South Africa

The social and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the resulting lockdowns, have taken a heavy toll on people worldwide. The effects have been particularly difficult, however, in communities already suffering from extreme poverty, high unemployment, and significant public health challenges. In the area where Siyabonga is located, the community has experienced significant food shortages and the unemployment rate, already at nearly 50%, has worsened. Only a few of the parents we serve were working prior to the lockdown and nearly all have now lost their jobs. The situation is amplified by the continuing water crisis, which makes it even more difficult to prevent the spread of the virus. Many people in our community do not have water for hand washing and cannot afford hand sanitizer.

Over the past six months, Siyabonga has been unable to open its center due to restrictive lockdown regulations. However, we have been working to help ensure the safety of our learners at home by providing much-needed soap and water to families in the community. On August 16, the South African government finally announced that schools would be allowed to re-open once they are able to meet a set of safety measures. Given the difficult situations many of our students and families are facing, we are working to open Siyabonga as quickly as possible. In addition to providing high-quality education, Siyabonga offers three meals a day, thus helping to relieve the food shortages many families face.

We are working with the South African Department of Social Development to implement the recommended safety measures and plan to be ready to open within the week. The steps we have taken include:

1. Holding a parent information session to discuss the plan for reopening and address any concerns they may have, which 52 parents attended.

2. Limiting attendance numbers to 60 percent of our standard classroom size to enable distancing.

3. Setting up a station at the gate to take temperatures and ensure that everyone has a mask and is sanitized before entering.

4. Developing a careful plan to ensure social distancing and hygiene inside classrooms, including special masks for school, regular handwashing, and separate tables and chairs for each child.

5. Changing daily programming to avoid crowding in the playground and other spaces.

We look forward to welcoming the children back to school and feel confident we can do so safely. However, as always, we depend on our donors to have the resources to do so sustainably. If we have sufficient funds, we would also like to be able to provide meals to other vulnerable young people in the community. And from Monday, September 14, 9:00 am EDT, through Friday, September 19, EDT, you have a chance to make even more of a difference by donating during GlobalGiving’s Little by Little Matching Campaign. During the Little by Little Campaign, all donations up to $50 will be matched at 50%.

We are living in uncertain times but together we can still make a positive difference in the lives of children. Please help Siyabonga again provide much needed services to families in our community by donating this coming week.

Thank you!

Siyabonga opened for the school year on January 15, 2020. It was a happy day particularly for the returning children, as well as the children coming to the Centre for the first time. This year we have 91 children enrolled. Things had been going very well for the first couple of months. The children were all adapting to school and the teachers were all implementing our established program on a daily basis.

Like schools throughout South Africa and in many countries, our first quarter ended abruptly when the President of South Africa called for all schools, pre-school to university, to close on March 18. Although the number of cases of Covid-19 that have been reported in South Africa is lower than in many countries, many here are more vulnerable because of their living situation and the state of their health.  The following week, the President declared the pandemic a national disaster and ordered a strict lockdown to begin on March 26.  Just last night the lockdown was extended for the second time and will remain in effect until the number of new cases has peaked.

Most of the children who attend Siyabonga live in families that struggle to put food on the table and depend on their children receiving healthy meals at the Centre. Many people in our community are either informally employed or unemployed and don’t have the means to stock up on food or buy other necessities during the lockdown. We brainstormed ways we could help and were initially exploring food distribution. Then we learned that the Department of Social development and other organizations in the area are giving food parcels to the communities.

Due to the water crisis that our community experiences and the critical need for everyone to wash their hands regularly, we thought it would be helpful to supply water and soap to our families and others in the community. Thanks to the generosity of those of you who gave during our recent campaign, we were able to buy 240 bars of soaps and to purchase water to fill the four 5,000 litter tanks we have here at Siyabonga. We delivered the soap to people in their homes and then allowed them to come to fetch water here at Siyabonga. Staff has been supervising the people coming to get water to ensure social distance is observed.

As the lockdown continues, we will continue to look for ways we can help the families we serve. We are now exploring whether it is feasible to still provide meals for children as the Centre.

I am very grateful to those that gave during the recent campaign. Your donations allowed us to provide some assistance during this difficult time.  I am also deeply appreciative to all of you who donate throughout the year. We would not be able to do what we do without you.

I hope you and your families are all healthy and staying safe.

Thank you again for all of your support.

Khethiwe