POLOKWANE – Ngwana House is situated in Springbok Street and houses babies from birth to about three years. They have 15 personnel and look after between 16 to 23 babies at any time.
They are dependent on government and donations to see to their needs and according to Louise Snyman, Project Manager, they are struggling financially.
You might also want to read: Ngwana house personnel really have a warm heart
“We had to apply for subsidy in November and when we recently contacted the Department of Social Development to find out when we would receive the money, we were informed they were still busy with costing. After the problems at another children’s home in the city, the department is investigating all institutions that get government assistance,” she said, adding the operational costs for the house is on average between R70 000 and R80 000 per month.
“This includes salaries, living expenses such as electricity, water and food, as well as nappies and medical care for the babies. What we receive from the government is not always enough to meet these expenses which is why we rely on donations. “Each month is different as we only receive R2 500 per child we look after, but only at the end of the month to pay the next month’s expenses. So, for example, if we only have 16 children in our care for this month, but 23 next month, the money we received for the 16 children will not be able to meet the needs of the 23 the coming month. The R2 500 we receive per child has not increased since we first opened 10 years ago despite the cost of everything increasing year after year.”
Items the house are in dire need of include nappies, InfaCare milk 1, 2 and 3 and clothes for babies six months and older. They also need maize meal, cleaning materials and fruit purity as they prepare fresh vegetables for the children.
“For this month we are doing alright, but we do not know what next month will bring as we might not have enough money to pay for everything we need. This is why we appeal to readers to open their hearts and help us wherever they can,” Louise said.
