Playing Your Part during Lockdown Level 4

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By Mduduzi Malinga

As the lockdown restrictions have been eased, South Africa has moved to lockdown level 4, allowing the phased reopening of some businesses and industries subject to strict precautions.  President Cyril Ramaphosa emphasized that drastic measures are required to contain the spread of the virus to save lives.

But South Africans citizens fear also of running out of money and food, as the lockdown has weakened the economy to downgrade and people are losing their jobs and struggling to afford food and other essentials. It has been encouraging to see how organisations, ordinary citizens and South African celebrities have been volunteering and playing their part to help society by donating and distributing food and emergency kits to families in impoverished communities across the country.

According to Solidarity Fund, R2,51bn in donations have been received from businesses, foundations, and ordinary citizens which was raised in an extraordinarily tough environment, with more than 280 000 food parcels delivered to distressed families across the country.

A media statement released by the Solidarity Fund (May 08) reads: “We thank each individual, business and charitable foundation for their generous donations over the past few weeks. We have used their contributions to make critical interventions in the areas of healthcare, humanitarian relief as well as mobilising South Africans to drive a united response to the pandemic. Each Rand will continue to be used with one goal in mind – to help South Africans survive the threat of COVID-19.”

How you can play your part:

Stay Home
People are encouraged to stay home unless they need to purchase essentials and always make sure they wear their masks when going outside.

Donating
Citizens can voluntarily donate food, sanitizers, money and other essentials goods to families in impoverished communities.

Buy/support local brands
In order for our country’s economy to be boosted and to be stronger, South Africans should consider buying local brands and support local small businesses in townships during the national lockdown and even after the pandemic.

Social distancing
Practice social distancing in public areas such as shopping centres, taxi ranks and workplaces in order to avoid the spread of the virus.

As South Africa, the spirit of Ubuntu that is part of our DNA as a nation, continues to unite us, inspire the world and we applaud the collaborative efforts taken by all sectors of society in fighting the spread of the virus.

Share with us how you are playing your part during level 4 nationwide lockdown – connect with us on Twitter/Facebook @Brand_SA