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CMD/USIZO UTHUKELA
INTRODUCTION
The Christian Social Services, or as it is called in Afrikaans, Christelike Maatskaplike Diens (CMD) Ladysmith formed a partnership with the social services (Usizo) of the Uniting Reformed Church in SA (URCSA) in the area. Together they form the CMD/Usizo uThukela. The chairperson is Ds F Steenkamp from the Dutch Reformed Church and the vice-chairperson is Rev ME Ngcobo from the URCSA. Rev I Ngema also serves on the management.
The organization serves the following areas:
Msinga: A rural Zulu tribal area between Dundee, Greytown and Ladysmith. The area is identified as one of the poverty pockets in KZN. There are very little development opportunities; agricultural potential is low, very little job opportunities, high incidence of intolerance between tribes, criminal activities, and high-risk sexual behaviour amongst youth. Partners in this area are the Uniting Reformed Church in SA Msinga and the Tygerberg Medical Students from Stellenbosch. One post of social worker is situated at Pomeroy, Msinga. The CMD/USIZO applied for two full time posts at Pomeroy. These are considered as part of the policy of the migration of services to poor, previously underserved areas.
Wasbank: Communities, forcefully removed from their land of birth in the 1970’s were relocated at Wasbank. These communities include Limehill, Hlathi, Uitval, Nazaretha, Somshoek, Ekuvukeni, Waaihoek. The pain of this resettlement is still felt in the community. Here the CMD/USIZO opened an office at Ekuvukeni, next to the URCSA congregation, where a house is leased from the local government. This office will also serve the Mhlumayo area, under the tribal authority of the Sithole tribe. An application for a full post in this office is also submitted to the department of social welfare and population development.
Ladysmith: The Ladysmith office has got two social worker posts. The one serves mainly Afrikaans speaking people in the area. The other serves the Mnambithi/Ezakheni area with focus on development work in these areas.
The CMD/USIZO also serves the following areas, where, up to now, we don’t have any social workers: uKhahlamba/Drakensberg, Wembezi/Estcourt, and the Mpofana/ Mooirivier/ Weenen areas, with focus on the previously disadvantaged community. We hope soon to employ trained auxiliary workers at Bergville and Weenen.
SERVICE PLAN
Case work
The CMD/Usizo focuses on casework and social development in the target communities. The social workers do the casework.
Abasizi
Fourty volunteers are trained and they serve with six social auxiliary workers in training. They call themselves the “Abasizi” (helpers). The trainee auxiliary workers are trained by the social workers, under guidance of the board of social workers in SA. The volunteers are further trained through short-term courses run by partners like the Red Cross; Focus on the Family, Christian Aids Buro of SA (CABSA), Kindernothilfe and relevant departments of government.
Khula ECD training
Two hundred crèche teachers from rural, poor communities are also trained and empowered to run pre-school education more effectively. In total they serve 10 000 pre-school children. Their training is done through Khula Trust, using accredited material for their training. The dream is to supply cost effective school readiness programs to teachers in affected communities. These crèches serve as catch nets, picking up vulnerable children and supporting their families.
VISION TO MAKE A GRASS ROOT DIFFERENCE IN THE BATTLE AGAINST HIV AND AIDS
YOUTH EDUCATION ON HEALTHY LIFE STYLE
The volunteers make use of the material of Focus on the family to do youth education at their local schools. In the past year 200 schools were visited and 10 000 learners reached. The posters distributed by Christian Literature Fund (CLF) were distributed to these schools, as well as handouts in colorful brochures.
Two youth camps are held annually at Pomeroy, attended by 150 youths.
Six big tent outreaches are also held in the area in order to reach post-school, unemployed youths. The focus is on youth evangelism and education.
CARING FOR VULNERABLE CHILDREN
The crèche project serves as catch net to catch up orphans, who are cared for by the extended family. The local crèche is assisted to help the extended family in the following ways:
- Taking the child away from the grand mother for 6 hours per day, giving her a bit of rest and time to continue with her ordinary life.
- Child school readiness education, helping with socializing skills, educated in healthy life style choices and healthy Christian life values.
- Families are assisted to apply for available government grants like foster care grants.
- Communities are educated in the management of these crèches and methods to apply for subsidies from government.
- Physically challenged children are also identified and referred.
SUPPORTING FAMILIES AFFECTED BY HIV AND AIDS
The volunteers are each caring for five families affected by HIV and AIDS. In total 200 families are cared for. Care is rendered in the following ways:
- Families are assisted to apply for government funding as applicable.
- Families are assisted with skills how to care for terminally ill members.
- Families are assisted in the interim with food parcels, immunity boosters, warm clothes and children clothes.
- Wheel chairs, commodes and walkers are also borrowed to families in need.
POVERTY RELIEF
Through partnership with Kindernothilfe Self Help Groups (SHG) are formed, each consisting of 10-15 unemployed people. They are trained in self help skills, saving skills, entrepreneurial skills, in order to be more self supportive. At this stage 15 groups of 15 people are formed. Candidates are also taught in Micro MBA skills. Mrs. C Moloi, from eMondlo, is supervising this very challenging project.
AIDS CENTER
The CMD/Usizo is also in process of building an Aids center in Ladysmith with money sponsored from the Netherlands. The center will supply in the following needs:
- A Drop in center for short-term care for terminal ill patients in or out of the hospital. In this regard volunteers will avail themselves to come in and care for people, as the need arises. Local doctors will volunteer to oversee the project. This is only a short term emergency ruling, since it happens from time to time that the volunteers pay for patients out of their pockets to get to the local hospital, only to hear at seven o’clock in the evening: Come back next week. The rural clinics are also not always equipped to sufficiently assist these people. This is not intended to be a hospice, but just a one or two night stand over, pending referral. If the need arises, the project may develop into a hospice. This is very costly!
- Office for advice and counseling to people in distress. Our Ladysmith social worker and volunteers will man this.
- Supply store for health medicines and immunity boosters, also looking at herbal relief, which is affordable.
- Training center with accommodation facilities to train volunteers. They come from far, need to sleep over for five days, and be given good catering, ablution and dormitory facilities in this time. The coming together also supplies in a big need to do de-briefing in groups. The volunteers are doing a great job and needs our support. Other service groups (especially in rural areas) will also be given support through the center.
- Information center on HIV and AIDS for the community.
- The center must also be a visible structure, generating energy and money from the broader community, making them more aware of the challenges related to HIV and Aids.
- The center must also serve as information center, challenging the broader Christian community in town to be less judgmental and more supportive in fighting this pandemic situation.
- The center, accommodating 40-50 people in a well equipped lecture room / conference room, will also supply in the needs of other NGO’s to have a training facility that is affordable.
ACCOUNTABILITY
Partnership
The CMD/Usizo is in partnership between the Dutch Reformed Church, URCSA, and the Thukela Mzinyathi Christian Council. The organization links up with the wider Christian community in the area.
Training is done in close partnership with relevant NGO’s who supply professional inputs. Amongst them are the Red Cross, Focus on the Family and Kindernothhilfe. The crèche material is written to Saqa accreditation standards in close relationship with accredited partners.
Co-operation with government departments
Each of the volunteers and crèche teachers build relationships and co-operate with the relevant local government structures in their areas, being it the Amakhosi, council, clinic or social worker. The social worker at the local provincial hospital occasionally refers patients to the volunteers to be assisted.
The department of social welfare and population development provides subsidy for the posts of social workers. They also receive regular annual planning and reports.
Auditing
Reyneke and Erasmus in Ladysmith annually audit books.
Community representation
On the executive committee serve Rev ME Ngcobo, Rev I Ngema, and social workers, Miss S Dlamini and Miss N Malinga. Mrs C Moloi is, as senior social worker, overseeing the project. Khula trust also employed seven tutors from the community, who are trained and empowered to serve their communities. One of them, Mrs E Ndlovu, assisted the department in registering 16 crèches in remote Mhlumayo area.
CMD/Usizo is an empowering, training, encouraging body, striving to enhance local community structures. This is done mainly by church donations. The project is well supported by the Dutch Reformed Church and URCSA structures in Ladysmith, Estcourt, Bergville, Winterton, Colenso and Weenen.
Registered Non profit organization
The CMD is a registered non profit organization. Registration number: NPO 009-231
Banking detail
CMD (Christelike Maatskaplike Diens)
Absa cheque account
098 023 0694
Branch code 33 41 2541
Contact detail
Contact person:
Dr LG Schoeman
PO Box 6, Ladysmith, 3370
schoeman@xsinet.co.za
(036) 637 6405
| Fax : | 083 7856 405 |
| | 0837856405 |
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