Up to two million meals will be given out to families in need across Durban from the Moti Cares Foundation, a charitable trust founded by the Moti Group in partnership with the Sihle Zikalala Development Fund.
After the destruction by looters across parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week, business leaders from the Gauteng-based Moti Group set the ball rolling for the massive outreach project in Chatsworth yesterday.
This aid, apart from food, will include blankets, PPE equipment and sanitary packs and will be directed to the families worst hit by the unrest, which has resulted in food shortages and destruction of supply chains.
Moti Group chief adviser Ashruf Kaka said yesterday that in the wake of the devastation in KZN, the foundation acted, also rallying support from various corporate organisations to assist desperate families.
“After the immediate shock, you go into a mode of ‘how can we help?’
“The first thing was to supply the necessities, and we had the resources for that in Johannesburg. This initiative has been launched with the vision of South Africans giving a hand-up to other South Africans, no matter their race or creed,” said Kaka, adding that the group operated within the mining sector and so already had all the in-house expertise and resources to organise an outreach project of this magnitude.
“We have also had a lot of donors come to the party, which added to the expertise. We knew that it wasn’t going to be easy, and there were a few obstacles, but we found solutions.
“As we are not familiar with Durban, we partnered with the Premier’s Foundation to help us understand what was happening on the ground so that we are able to distribute food and supplies where they are needed,” said Kaka.
To reach their target, goods distributed will include 50 tons of rice, 30 tons of dahl and 10 000 Nutriwell boxes, each containing 90 scientifically developed and nutritious meals, such as instant porridge, vegetable soup, soya stew and instant shakes.
Kaka said the food being distributed was non-perishable so that it provided a longer-term solution for struggling families.
“We are looking to deliver up to two million meals, and this includes non-perishables which can last for up to a year,” said Kaka.
The Independent on Saturday