News

Celebrating World Health Day – local Urban Health Champions part one

7 April 2010

African Children’s Feeding Scheme

The African Children's Feeding Scheme works tirelessly to improve the quality of life for those hardest hit – in particular orphans and vulnerable children, child-headed households and those in the care of elderly grandmothers.

The theme of World Health Day 2010 is urbanization and health.  Through the campaign “1000 cities – 1000 lives“, events are being organised worldwide, calling on cities to open up streets for health activities and stories of urban health champions are being gathered to illustrate what people are doing to improve health in their cities.

Tshikululu is commemorating World Health Day by profiling South African urban health champions – people and projects making a difference across the spectrum of this sector.

Sister Rejoice Nkutha (left) is the epitome of an urban health champion.  She has worked with her colleagues at the African Children’s Feeding Scheme (ACFS) since 1975 and is now the Executive Director of the organisation.  The past decade has seen her leading an able team of dedicated health and nutrition workers serving the malnourished and underprivileged in poor urban communities throughout central Gauteng – the project operates throughout Soweto, Kagiso, Tshepisong in the West Rand, Alexandra, Thembisa, Kwa-Thema and Tsakane in the East Rand.

ACFS was founded in 1945, when the late Bishop Trevor Huddleston started soup kitchens in winter for hungry children in Alexandra and Soweto.  Five years later, the first permanent feeding centre was established and the scheme was feeding 4 000 children daily.

Now, ACFS feeds 31 000 children a daily, and an additional 2 080 high school learners receive a hot meal at school daily.  The organisation also runs a malnutrition rehab centre, provides support by way of primary health care and food parcels for indigent households as part of a formalised empowerment programme, champions organic home food gardening in urban communities and runs skills training courses for unemployed mothers.

ACFS is supported by the Anglo American Chairman’s Fund, the De Beers Fund and the Wesbank Fund, all managed by Tshikululu.