Viva Foundation Measurable Outcomes for 2021

How Viva made a difference in 2021

Viva Covid19 Disaster Management Programme served the beneficiaries of the Viva Foundation belonging to a demographic that are most affected by the Pandemic and its economic impact.  The poor feels the impact of Covid19 more drastically than any other group in society.  Food security and maintaining the standard of education needed, were priorities that the Viva management and team set out to meet in 2021.  The nation-wide unrest that broke out in South Africa in July 2021, severely aggravated the dire food need in informal settlements, townships, inner-cities and other vulnerable communities.

We added Food Distribution points to the two main centres of Mamelodi East and Refilwe and at the height of the crisis, we were distributing food at 13 different points in the Johannesburg and Tshwane Metros and further afield. From March 2020 to the end of 2021 the Viva Foundation provided food parcels, vouchers and cooked meals to the value of over 2 million meals, with the help of generous donors and our amazing team and volunteers.  The Viva Kids Early Childhood Development, our Sexual Violence Prevention, and Art focus areas, were incorporated into the Viva Independent School's beneficiary pools.  We opened a second campus, the Viva Independent School, Refilwe, receiving learners from Grade R to Grade 7.

Viva Village Independent School Mamelodi – provided quality Independent Education to 300 Children in Foundation Phase (Grade RR to Grade 7) in Mamelodi and 19 learners in Refilwe, with qualified, SACE registered faculty and augmented CAPS curriculum.  The impact and benefit of an independent school in an informal settlement, became obvious during the Lockdown, when public schools remained closed, but private schools were allowed to open and continue educating learners. 

Infra-structure and Expansion – New classrooms were built at the Viva Village, Mamelodi and the Refilwe Campus. Toward the end of 2021, the Viva Management decided to establish boarding facilities for the existing Grade 7 class and proceed with Grade 8 at the Refilwe campus.  The decision followed very desperate circumstances amoung our Grade 7 learnership and the conviction that we cannot leave the learners half-way through their educational journeys.  The cost and effort for this project require high levels of donor and team commitment and it was rewarding to see the hope that the additional input brought about in the lives of our learners.