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For several decades amidst Apartheid, Helen Lieberman, a visionary speech therapist working with South African Township community members, identified fundamental Township issues:
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Overcrowding (most houses are overcrowded shacks, with no running water and no sanitation, creating unsafe living conditions)
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Rampant unemployment (most unemployed workers are unskilled)
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Absence of social infrastructure and services:
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lack of basic local health-care facilities
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lack of daycare centers (many mothers work long hours and leave
their children with unprofessional daycare providers in precarious and unsafe conditions)
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lack of assistance for the most vulnerable community members
(disabled children and adults, seniors, orphans, and the visually impaired)
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lack of adequate schools and after-school activities
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lack of basic shopping facilities
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Rampant criminality
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Budgetary and bureaucratic constraints limiting governmental action.
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In 1992, to address these critical issues more effectively, Helen Lieberman and Township community members created Ikamva Labantu, a non-governmental nonprofit organization benefiting 55,000 Township community members annually.
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Ikamva Labantu works in partnership with Township community leaders. Together, they have designed and are managing nine programs implementing over 1,000 community-based social services such as child care, education, professional training, access to medical and legal services, and skills training for disabled community members. Each program shares executive power with community leaders, making them responsible for the successful implementation of the program. Programs that generate income use it to support the operation, and if possible, the extension of that program.
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Ikamva Labantu has been honored by the Mandela Government to be the lead partner in a pilot project designed to implement a program that will test and set up the new funding policy for social services in South Services.
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Read a letter from Helen Lieberman, the director of Ikamva Labantu.
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Empowering and developing Township communities is essential for the success of the budding South African democracy. Your contribution will make you a valuable participant in this extraordinary and crucial transformation.
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