Church leaders applaud Ramaphosa, pledge R1 million toward Covid-19 relief
As part of their joint-strategy, churches will be rolling-out cash vouchers across the 11 districts.
A COALITION of churches, Christian associations, ecumenical networks and ministers’ fraternals across KwaZulu-Natal have pledged R1 million to relief efforts in the province in the face of the Covid-19 outbreak. In a letter to the state president recently, they applauded Ramaphosa’s decisive leadership, commending the example set by the cabinet and the premiers, of pledging a third of their salary to the Solidarity Fund.
“South Africa is in lockdown until the end of April in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This dramatic and yet critical step is having a very significant impact on the country, especially on the food security of a majority of the people,” said Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, chairperson of the KwaZulu-Natal Church Leaders Group and chairperson of the KZN Inter Religious Council.
Also read: Tread lightly, Covid-19 is 10 times more deadly than Swine flu, says WHO
As a part of their joint-strategy, churches will be rolling-out cash vouchers across the 11 districts. They will also identify beneficiaries to recieve SMS vouchers that can be used to buy food at local supermarkets. Beneficiaries will be selected through community leaders and church networks and vouchers will be supplied through a partnership with the South African Council of Churches and Intellimali, an SMS voucher service provider.
For more information, log onto the KZN Covid-19: Churches Respond website: https://www.covid19response.co.za/
*Notice: Coronavirus reporting at Caxton Local Media aims to combat fake news
Dear reader,
As your local news provider, we have the duty of keeping you factually informed on Covid-19 developments. As you may have noticed, mis- and disinformation (also known as “fake news”) is circulating online. Caxton Local Media is determined to filter through the masses of information doing the rounds and to separate truth from untruth in order to keep you adequately informed. Local newsrooms follow a strict pre-publication fact-checking protocol. A national task team has been established to assist in bringing you credible news reports on Covid-19.
Readers with any comments or queries may contact National Group Editor Irma Green (irma@caxton.co.za) or Legal Adviser Helene Eloff (helene@caxton.co.za).
You can also sign up for news alerts on Telegram. Send us a Telegram message (not an SMS) with your name and surname (ONLY) to 060 532 5532. 
Here’s where you can download Telegram on Android or Apple.
