maize donated by Premier Foods for distribution to affected communities
KZN Response, a collective of proactive Christian organisations, which was created in response to the Covid-19 lockdown last year, has been helping communities affected by food shortages caused by the civil disobedience.
KZN Response comprises KZN Christian Council, Zoë-Life, The Domino Foundation, The Red Cross Society and CityHope Disaster Relief. KZN Response hosted a clean-up last weekend, working with Global Shapers and Durban Solid Waste, which saw hundreds of people coming out to help clean Addington Beach, uShaka and Berea Centre. The collective has been organising ongoing outreach – managing trucks full of donations and distributing food and essential items to affected communities. Tons of maize have been donated by Premier Foods and sent down from Gauteng, being distributed through the combined networks.
“Working together makes us stronger, and more efficient, and avoids duplication and waste,” explained Sihle Nxasana, who works with KZN Response and heads the marketing arm of The Domino Foundation. “Each organisation has individual areas of expertise and strengths, so we can achieve so much more when we all join forces around a single need, streamlining our operations and working together,” he said. A big part of their outreach is an ongoing needs assessment to identify where and what the needs are, and to match the needs with donor responses. To maximise efficiency and community reach, the collective also finds organisations in each instance working directly within the affected areas, to partner with and support. Their network is able to assist beneficiaries in the main cities and towns, as well as through rural community structures. KZN Response invites corporates, organisations, individuals and groups who want to get involved in any way, to do so. Volunteers, resources and donors are required to dovetail on the reach and services already being offered.
