Hygiene

People in Masakhane have adapted their attitude towards hygiene; first of all, better hand hygiene for oneself and also for one’s children to fight the coronavirus. Everyone has sanitizer at home, either store-bought or home-made out of Dettol, spirits, vinegar, aloe vera, and essential oils for those who can’t afford to buy it. Another huge step for a township like Masakhane is the sanitization of public toilets. All in all, people show high awareness. However, there is still a lack of knowledge about the virus, and especially about how it spreads.

Free time

With people staying at home more, there is a lot of time to keep the house nice and clean and to look after the garden, if there is one. For families with children, it is essential to keep them busy by reading books or playing with them, especially where there is no Wi-Fi access and thus no possibility of homeschooling.

We see children playing, going back to “old-school games” like hide and seek, making the most of their free time. It is a curious time, even though the circumstances are not at all favorable. Yet, spending more quality time with the family or having time for ourselves, one can start to appreciate the “precious simplicity of things” again.

After Ramaphosa’s third official speech

In the speech, Ramaphosa extended the lockdown for another three weeks. This extension was a massive shock for the people because they don’t know how to cope financially any longer. With every passing day of the lockdown, people have less money, which means they can afford less and less food. The government is not doing enough for the population, and as a consequence, hunger and crime rate are rising.

With hunger being a big problem in South Africa, one significant achievement was the installation of a soup kitchen together with the local government, local community leaders, and local NGOs. We will talk more about this in the following days.