Media Release:International Albinism Awareness Day
For immediate release
13 June 2022
13 June is proclaimed as International Albinism Awareness Day and by acknowledging and celebrating this day, a platform is created to educate people on albinism in a quest to demystify and debunk deep-seated misconceptions and superstitious beliefs about this condition.
In 2013, the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted a resolution calling for the prevention or attacks and discrimination against persons with albinism. This was followed by a recommendation on 26 March 2015, by civil society organisations to consider persons with albinism as a specific group with particular needs who require special attention. The Council created the mandate of independent expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism.
What is Albinism?
Albinism is an inherited genetic condition that reduces the amount of melanin pigment formed in theĀ skin, hair and/or eyes. Albinism occurs in all racial and ethnic groups throughout the world. In the U.S., approximately one in 18,000 to 20,000 people has some type of albinism. In other parts of the world, the occurrence can be as high as one in 3,000.
Common myths about albinism?
A common myth is that people with albinism have red eyes. Although lighting conditions can allow the blood vessels at the back of the eye to be seen, which can cause the eyes to look reddish or violet, most people with albinism have blue eyes, and some have hazel or brown eyes. There are different types of albinism and the amount of pigment in the eyes varies.
MYTH: Sex with people with albinism is a cure for HIV/Aids: FALSE: This false belief has resulted in the rape of women and girls with albinism in parts of Africa.
FALSE BELIEF: People with albinism (children in particular) bring bad luck. FALSE: There is superstitious misconception that the condition brings sickness or even death.
FALSE BELIEF: Albinism is a punishment of a curse from the gods or ancestral spirits.
FALSE BELIEF: Body parts of persons living with albinism can be used in portions to cure other diseases.
FALSE BELIEF: Drinking the blood of a person with albinism gives you magical powers.
FALSE BELIEF: People who spent too much time in the sun will develop albinism.
FALSE BELIEF: People with albinism have a lower IQ than the rest of the population.
The abovementioned false beliefs are just a few examples which may lead to serious harm, or even death of people with albinism, seeing that many people still believe these myths about albinism to be true.
People with albinism are at risk of isolation because the condition is often misunderstood. Social stigmatization can occur, especially within communities of colour, where the race or paternity of a person with albinism may be questioned. Families and schools must make an effort to include children with albinism in group activities.
Source of some of the facts: Website ofĀ National Organization forĀ AlbinismĀ and Hypopigmentation
#albinismĀ are #albinismĀ #albinoĀ #albinismisbeautiful #albinismawareness
2022-2027 DISTRICT IDP/BUDGET AND PMS PROCESS PLAN AND DISTRICT SECTION 27 FRAMEWORK
Notice is hereby given that the 2022-2027 Ā Ā Garden Route District Municipality (GRDM) Integrated Development Plan (IDP)/Budget/Performance Management System (PMS) Process Plan and District Framework have been adopted by Council in terms of Section 27, 28, and 29 Ā of the Local Government Municipal Systems Act (Act 32 of 2000) and the Municipal Finance Management Act (Act 56 of 2003), at a Council meeting held on 27 May 2022.
Media Release: Officials from Garden Route District Municipality celebrate Employee Wellness Day –Ā 30 employees donated blood!
For immediate releaseĀ 3 June 2022
Every year, National Employee Wellness Month is celebrated during the month of June.Ā In view of this, the Garden Route District Municipality’s Employee Assistance Section organised a full-day programme filled with wellness activities to encourage employees to improve their physical, mental, and emotional well-being at work and overall.
Research indicates that work is closely linked to an individual’s health and well-being. And, as a result, several service providers were invited to interact with employees and advise them on how to improve and adopt a healthier workplace wellness culture since they spend most of their time at work.
Nedbank, Virgin Active, Bonitas- and LA Health Medical Scheme, the Western Cape Department of Health, the Western Cape Blood Services, and CANSA Cancer Association of South Africa (CANSA) representatives were among the service providers.
The GRDM Blood Donation Drive was one of the highlights of the day as the Western Cape Blood Service (WCBS) also urges all eligible donors to donate blood as blood stocks are critically low.
According to the South African National Blood Service (SANBS), āDonating a unit of this āprecious gift of lifeā saves lives of those in dire need of blood. One must develop a habit of donating blood in order for SANBS to collect sufficient blood that will ensure that in cases of emergency quality blood is always available. Thousands of patients can die daily if there is insufficient quality blood in stock. When one donates blood, they give patients the gift money cannot buy or science cannot create. A unit of blood can save up to three lives as blood is separated into red blood cells, plasma and platelets.ā
Thirty (30) employees from GRDM donated blood today.
Benefits of donating blood:
Improves overall cardiovascular health.
Enhances the production of new blood cells to produce new blood cells to maintain good health.
Lower the risk of strokes.
Reduces the chance of heart attacks.
Lower the risk of cancer.
Free health screening – vital signs, blood type, and other screening tests.
It saves lives – many lives are saved and hope is given to many whose situation may otherwise be hopeless.
Blood donors give such patients a second lease of life.
As part of the dayās activities, Virgin Active also hosted a Grid Class for employees to participate in.
Media Release: 32 Small Businesses benefitted from the Garden Route District Municipalityās SMME Support and Development Programme For immediate release 31 May 2022
As small businesses are the backbone of the economy, the government has introduced various forms of relief to help Small Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) recover from the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
A good example of this is when the Garden Route District Municipality (GRDM) Council resolved, four years ago āto put their money where their mouths areā by supporting and investing tangibly in SMME’s of the Garden Route. With a mentorship process funded by the GRDM, specific business needs were identified through one-on-one business assessments.
This resulted in the GRDM Economic Development and Tourism Departments SMME Support and Development Programme being introduced during the 2019/20 financial year (1 July 2019 ā 30 June 2020). This Programme was initiated and is coordinated by the GRDM Economic Development and Tourism Department. Other stakeholders, such as the Department of Agriculture (DoA); Department of Economic Development and Tourism (DEDAT); Small Enterprises Development Agency (Seda), the Economic Development Partnership (EDP) and local municipalities in the district played a critical role in driving this.
In the past year, the GRDM Council allocated R682 000.00 from its budget to assist SMMEs in the district to grow their businesses. Small businesses were invited to submit proposals as part of the selection process. An advertisement was placed in the regional newspapers, social media and the municipal website.
An Adjudication Committee, representing various stakeholders, reviewed the all the business proposals received and made recommendations. These recommendations were subsequently approved, which led to a formal handover ceremony.
Thirty-two (32) SMMEs from across the Garden Route received much-needed equipment from the GRDM stakeholder partnership on Thursday, 26 May 2022. The GRDM Deputy Executive Mayor, Adv. Gert van Niekerk, members of the GRDM Mayoral Committee, Local Economic Development (LED) managers of the local municipalities in the district, and various stakeholders attended the ceremony.
The program was officially opened by Ald. Iona Kritzinger, GRDM Portfolio Chairperson of Corporate Services. With a special welcome to the thirty-two beneficiaries, she expressed her hopes that the equipment they received would add value to their businesses and help them to thrive.
Ald. Rosina Ruiters, GRDM Portfolio Chairperson of Planning and Economic Development Services, presented a brief overview of the SMME Support and Development Programme. She announced that the GRDM Council has invested R 2.1 million in the programme over the years and has supported 65 small businesses in the process.
Ald. Rosina Ruiterspresented a brief overview of the SMME Support and Development Programme.
The program was officially opened by Ald. Iona Kritzinger, GRDM Portfolio Chairperson of Corporate Services.
The program director of the event and the Acting Executive Manager of the Planning and Economic Development Department, Ms Melanie Wilson, commended the small business owners for their endurance and strength; and encouraged them with a quote from the former president of South Africa, Nelson Mandela, āDo not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.ā Ms Wilson rendered a special word of acknowledgement and appreciation to the partners involved by saying, āAs government we cannot function on our own; we need partnerships to be successful. With this project weāve realized that in order to change the lives of our people and to make an impact, we need to build partnerships.” Wilson stated. GRDM signed an agreement with Casidra to execute the procurement process of the items on behalf of the District, which was exceptionally well managed.
A message of support for the partnership was delivered by Mr David Nefdt, Acting CEO of Casidra. He explained that Casidra believes that entrepreneurship is the only way to ensure that people have jobs, that there is food on the table, and to address the challenges in our communities.Ā Ā “There are not enough businesses that can create jobs, so the only way is to start new ones. Casidra wants to be part of this dream of establishing local businesses in the Garden Route District,” he said.
Mr Nefdt gave a brief overview of Casidra’s mandate and function and said that according to his understanding, government needs to do more to foster an environment for entrepreneurs to flourish by making it easier for small businesses to survive. He challenged the small businesses present with the following words, “You need to innovate unity; look at the cracks in your community and see if you can come up with something that can address the needs of people in your community. Let us all create an environment that encourages businesses to grow and be creative and innovative in addressing the needs of all people,” Nefdt concluded.
Program Director of the event and the Acting Executive Manager of the Planning and Economic Development Department, Ms Melanie Wilson.
A message of support for the partnership was delivered by Mr David Nefdt, Acting CEO from Casidra.
The keynote address was delivered by Ald. Gert van Niekerk, who explained the various aspects on how the Covid-19 pandemic resulted in business closures, job losses, and declining business profits. Accordingly, the GRDM signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Department of Economic Development & Tourism and SEDA with the objective of supporting SMME development in the Garden Route and thus make a crucial impact.
Van Niekerk explained that by initiating and implementing the SMME Support and Development Programme, the Council believes that the assistance granted to the thirty-two (32) SMMEs will make a significant contribution to the sustainability and expansion of their businesses. “We hope that you will continue to create jobs and that your businesses will grow. We salute you!ā Cllr van Niekerk concluded.
Keynote address was delivered by Ald. Gert van Niekerk.
This project was managed by Mr Johannes Jafta, Economic Development Officer.
The vote of thanks was delivered by GRDM EPWP Manager, Mr Richard Dyantyi.
Two (2) beneficiary SMME’s, Ms Tabita Williams from Ludify Suppliers and Ms Siphesihle Bobo from SihleĀ FitnessĀ Academy, gave an overview of their respective businesses and thanked the GRDM and partners for firstly believing in them, and secondly for providing equipment and support to SMME’s in the district.
During the vote of thanks, EPWP Manager for the GRDM, Mr Richard Dyantyi, thanked the GRDM Council for their commitment to small businesses in the district. Dyantyi further thanked Casidra as a ‘driving partner’ as well as the other stakeholders involved and the GRDM Team for their commitment in making the programme a success.
At the end of the formalities, the Project Manager of the Programme, Mr Johannes Jafta, together with the GRDM Mayoral Committee, handed over equipment and material to the thirty-two (32) SMMEs.
Upon receiving the equipment, the SMMEs are required to sign a contract in which they agree not to sell the equipment donated to them. As part of the monitoring and evaluation process, GRDM officials will be required to regularly access the premises of all beneficiaries to view the equipment and assess each businessās growth.
Public Notice: Adoption of the 2022-2027 Integrated Development Plan (IDP), 2022/2023 Medium Term Revenue and Expenditure Framework and Multi-Year Budget
Notice 63/2022
Notice is hereby given that the Garden Route District Municipal Councilās Integrated Development Plan for the period 2022-2027 and the Medium Term Revenue and Expenditure Framework (MTREF) Multi-Year Budget for the period 2022/2023-2024/2025, were compiled in accordance with the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act 2000 (Act 32 of 2000) and Municipal Finance Management Act 2003 (Act 56 of 2003).
These documents were adopted by the Garden Route District Council at a District Council meeting held on Friday, 27 May 2022.
These documents will be available at all main local libraries, satellite offices and the Garden Route District Municipalityās IDP Unit, 54 York Street George and on the GRDM municipal website www.gardenroute.gov.za.
Please contact the District IDP Manager (Ms Mercy James) or Budget Manager (Ms Louise Hoek) at 044Ā 803 1300, rekords@gardenroute.gov.za with any enquiries.
PUBLIC NOTICE: Invitation to register on the GRDM Housing Demand Database
For Immediate Release 29 May 2022
Are you a resident of Bitou, Knysna, George, Mossel Bay, Hessequa, Oudtshoorn or Kannaland and looking for an opportunity to obtain affordable housing?Ā Then the Garden Route District Municipality invites you to register on our housing demand database. We are preparing to offer affordable housing to residents and have the following two options. A Social Rental Housing option for households with a combined monthly income between R1 851 and R22 000, and a FLISP option, for households with a combined monthly income between R3501 and R22 000.
In line with the above, we have prepared a standard application form that those interested in Affordable Housing must complete. Forms are available through the following platforms, namely:
At all local Housing offices of the 7 B-municipalities in the district.
All the GRDM sub-offices in the region.
For any related enquiries, please direct them to the GRDM Human Settlements office representatives, namely Ms Shehaam Sims or Mr Headman Mashotha at 044 803 1454.
You have three options to complete the application forms.
Submit it to your Local Municipality’s Housing Section
Submit it at any of the Garden Route District Municipality offices in the region
E-mail a scanned copy of the forms to info@gardenroute.gov.za
Please note that your form is not a subsidy application however, feel free to contact your local Municipalityā Housing Office should you require any further details.
