| Sophakama Community Based Development Care and Support Programme |
|
|
|
Sophakama was established in February 2003 by a group of unemployed young people from the area in response to the rising number of child headed families due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Programmes 1. The Youth Programme is devised to help young people develop at positive future by offering intensive, practical help and support. It provides aftercare support for vulnerable children and young people. Sophakama has recently launched a new programme called “A chance to play” which involves taking the children in disadvantaged areas to big sporting games i.e. Soccer and rugby at Stadiums. They also teach life skills and indigenous games and buy their sports kits and uniforms. 2. The Home Based Care programme provides home based care to people who are ill and home-bound due to TB, HIV/AIDS or other chronical illnesses. 3. The Nutrition Programme runs a soup Kitchen, where food is offered for free to those in need. The soup is staffed by volunteers. The Organisation has a food garden on the school grounds where they grow vegetable garden for the kitchen. Staff The organisation has 10 full time volunteers that provide home based care to a 100 patients. They also have 5 tutors who volunteer to help orphaned and vulnerable children with homework in the afternoons. They also help these children with educational workshops on recreational activities and on personal hygiene and drug abuse. Funders Their main funders are Terre des Hommes from Germany and Oxfam Australia. VW Community Trust funds the A Chance to Play programme. Challeges The main challenge faced by the organisation is working from a school, they would like to build their own structure soon. Sophakama is hopeful that soon they will have raised enough money to build their own structure. Contact Details: Brenda Lalela, Coordinator Telephone number : +27 [041] 466 3181 Bookmark this article:          |
‘Sophakama’, as it is affectionately known in its community, means “we will rise”. Sophakama is a small community based organisation that serves the Joe Slovo Township and the Kwa Duse informal settlement in Port Elizabeth. At present Sophakama operates from the Joe Slovo Secondary School.