Almost 100 young people from Gugulethu, Khayelitsha and Dunoon celebrated the annual Muslim ritual sacrifice Eid-ul-Adha (Festival of the Sacrifice) at the Saratoga Farm in Philippi at the
weekend.
Meals were also provided to the youth in attendance.
As part of the SA National Zakah Fund (Sanzaf) operation Qurbani programme, the organisation aimed to bring more awareness to the second Eid.
Sanzaf general manager Yasmina Francke said part of the message of Operation Qurbani was to share knowledge about the differences, as well as similarities, between cultures.
“This marks the end of the Hajj and part of that is an obligatory Sunnah, or Qurbani where families come and donate a third or an entire (head of) livestock, which we use within our feeding schemes.
“The youth that attended on Saturday received an education on the custom and a meal, while also receiving a parcel of meat to take home.”
She said while they as a social welfare and educational organisation can do only so much, food security remained a severe need within poorer communities.
Sanzaf does an assessment of families who receive assistance and members who show interest in development or skills programmes, can participate, said Francke.
Saratoga Farm livestock are sacrificed until the third day of Tashreeq, when pilgrims make a final ritual of the Hajj and as part of the ritual families donate a third of the meat to the needy.
Sanzaf takes on the responsibility of distributing the donated meat through its feeding schemes and sends teams to Malawi and Mozambique.
This is to help ensure that the sacrifices for these countries are performed accordingly and that the meat is distributed to those who need it most.
It also donates R15 of each Qurbani to the Masjid Waqf Fund, which assists mosques in disadvantaged areas.
Find out more about Sanzaf’s projects and programmes by calling 0861 726 923 or visiting www.sanzaf.org.za.