Be of service to those who need it most this Mandela Day - President Ramaphosa

President Cyril Ramaphosa has used the weekly newsletter to galvanise South Africans to dedicate their Mandela Day to acts of service, including feeding the hungry and comforting those who need it the most.

International Mandela Day is commemorated annually on Former President Nelson

Mandela’s birthday, July 18.

“In 2009, the United Nations General Assembly declared 18 July Nelson Mandela International Day... It is a global day of action to harness Madiba’s legacy in service of a challenge that confronts most nations: the fight against poverty, inequality and injustice. 

“This year, we ask every South African to heed that call. Let us give our 67 minutes through acts of service that feed the hungry, comfort the lonely or support the elderly. Let us lend our skills and time to the organisations that serve our communities every day. These acts matter because they change lives,” President Ramaphosa said.

He noted that overcoming poverty, as the former President said, is not an act of charity but an “act of justice”.

“On this Mandela Day, let us also recommit ourselves to the difficult task of ending poverty and inequality in our country and in our world. 

“Among other things, this means transforming the rules and institutions that govern the world's finances so that they serve the needs of developing economies, not only the wealthiest. It means ensuring that the commitments made to the countries bearing the heaviest burden of climate change are honoured and strengthened,” the President said.

A government at work

On the world stage, the South African government used its G20 Presidency last year to put inequality firmly on the global agenda, commissioning the first ever-report on global inequality to G20 to world leaders. That work continues.

“We are now working with other countries and institutions to establish an International Panel on Inequality to monitor global inequality, assess its causes and consequences and recommend the policies needed to reverse it.

“No nation can overcome inequality alone. We need coordinated multilateral action, rooted in solidarity and shared responsibility,” President Ramaphosa said.

Locally, the President said Mandela Day serves as a reminder to refocus efforts by sustaining investment in education, health and “prioritising the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable”.

“We must continue to direct energy and resources towards strengthening early learning in our schools and completing the overhaul of our skills development system. At the same time, we must continue to build a health care system that provides quality care to all who need it, regardless of their ability to pay. 

“To tackle poverty and inequality, we must ensure that our laws and policies protect workers and that our regulatory environment encourages investment.

“At the same time, we are continuing to improve our social protection system and helping people build livelihoods, gain skills and find work through our public and social employment programmes,” President Ramaphosa said.

He called on South Africans to work with government to renew resolve to “tackle the poverty and inequality that make such service necessary in the first place”.

“Madiba taught us that building a just, caring and inclusive society is not the work of governments alone. It is the work of ordinary people performing extraordinary acts of compassion, courage and service. As Madiba said: 'It is now in your hands'.

“Let the acts of service that we undertake this week be part of the foundation on which we build a better country and a better world for all,” President Ramaphosa said. – SAnews.gov.za