“WHAT counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.” So said Nelson Mandela at the 90th birthday celebrations of fellow Struggle stalwart Walter Sisulu in 2002.
Seven years later, on his own 90th birthday, a unanimous decision of the UN General Assembly marked July 18, the day Mandela was born, as Nelson Mandela International Day. And so began a movement that would see people dedicating 67 minutes of their time to a community service activity, named for the 67 years Mandela spent making the world a better place.
Having taken the baton of doing good for others from Mandela, 67 people will celebrate his birthday this year by trekking through the Kilimanjaro National Park in Tanzania in an effort to summit Africa’s highest mountain on July 18.
The aim is to raise funds for underprivileged girls whose parents cannot afford to buy them monthly supplies of sanitary towels.
Spearheaded by the Imbumba Foundation’s Richard Mabaso, and through a partnership with the Nelson Mandela Foundation and other sponsors (such as Independent Media and Bongani Mountain Lodge), it’s hoped the Caring4Girls initiative will raise enough money to supply 350 000 girls with sanitary towels.
Last year, more than three million sanitary towels were distributed across KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Gauteng, with some schools in North West receiving their share last week. Of the initiative that started in 2012 with the aim of changing the lives of two million girls by 2020, Mabaso said: “I had the privilege of watching Trek4Mandela and Caring4Girls growing from baby steps to where they are today. The most important thing for me was to see the public sector, private sector and individuals rallying around the project to make it what it is now. Without the support of various stakeholders, the programme would not be where it is today. It’s humbling to see those institutions coming on board.”
As an uncle whose niece experienced her first period without a sanitary towel, Mabaso said: “It’s my belief that we will be able to restore the dignity and pride of the young girls.”
Nelson Mandela Foundation chief executive Sello Hatang described the project as a great one. “We must always remember that as we rise, we need not leave a lot of people behind. We must keep lifting them.
“It’s a great project for all of us as a nation to be involved in.
“Sanitary towels for most families, it’s part of the grocery list, but for some… who resort to unhealthy means so as to access the basic right of education… We believe we have to step in and bridge that gap,” said Hatang.
He joined the 2015 Trek4Mandela team, but won’t be able to summit this year as the Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture will be held on July 17, just a day before the team reaches the peak of Africa.
This year’s lecture will be addressed by Bill Gates, with the theme “Living together”; “so those who’ll be summiting will be carrying that message, reminding us that we live together”, Hatang said.
He said various other social responsibility projects had been born out of the Trek4Mandela initiative, with many people and organisations pledging support or starting interlinked projects. “Our impression is that the project has been a huge success. We’ve had people who have come through with their own projects linked to this. We have raised awareness to say, all of us can do something.”
l It costs R30 to keep one girl in school for one month or R360 to keep one girl in school for one year.
Independent Media has partnered with Imbumba Foundation and the Nelson Mandela Foundation for the 2016 Trek4Mandela and Caring4Girls initiative.
Through this partnership, Bongani Mountain Lodge will sponsor The Star deputy news editor Omphitlhetse Mooki to summit with the group, recording their every step.
To help raise funds for sanitary towels please SMS “OMPHI” to 42513 or deposit directly into the Imbumba Foundation Trust account: FNB Cheque Account, 62345136677; Branch name: Empangeni; Branch code: 220130; Swift code: FIRNZAJJ; Ref: Omphi.