The Department of Social Development (DSD) will today commemorate the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, commonly known as End Poverty Day, raising awareness about the ongoing global fight against poverty and mobilising collective action to eradicate it in all its forms.

In a statement on Thursday, the department highlighted that the commemoration comes at a time when South Africa is grappling with the cost-of-living crisis and rising inequality.

‘The goal of eradicating poverty is at the heart of the core mandate of the Department of Social Development,’ the department said.

To mark this day, Deputy Minister of Social Development, Ganief Hendricks, will lead the Integrated Community Registration Outreach Programme (ICROP) at Cofimvaba, within the Intsika Yethu Local Municipality in the Eastern Cape.

‘The municipality is largely rural and characterised by underdevelopment and high levels of poverty. The outreach programme will focus on promoting access to services such as birth registratio
n and social grants applications to address issues of child poverty and malnutrition in the area,’ the department said.

As part of the programme, Deputy Minister Hendricks will distribute school uniforms to learners at Intlangano and Sentile Primary Schools, ensuring that children from poor households remain in school, helping to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty.

In the North West province, MEC of Social Development, Basetsana Sussana Dantjie, will also lead the commemoration by handing over a cheque to the Thota Ya Tau Fish Harvest Primary Cooperative in the Dr. Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District Municipality.

This National Development Agency (NDA) supported cooperative will receive R321 225.58 in grant funding to purchase essential equipment, including a fishing boat, mobile cold-room trailer, and a generator.

These investments will help the cooperative expand its fishery operations, create sustainable jobs for its 10 members, and boost local economic development.

These outreach programmes are
part of the department’s broader initiatives under Social Development Month, aimed at showcasing and promoting access to services that alleviate poverty and hunger among the country’s most vulnerable communities.

Source: South African Government News Agency