As the dust settles on the recent elections, it is time for the new administration to confront a silent catastrophe that has plagued our nation for far too long – the malnutrition crisis. The haunting statistics reveal a grim reality: over 1.5 million children in South Africa suffer from stunted growth, a reflection of the…
*This article is from our 2020 edition of our On The Field CHW magazine and has been slightly edited. When asked what he planned to do with the prizes he won, which included cash and a scale, Nkomazi’s top-performing Community Health Worker (CHW), Nhlanhla Mkhonza from the Ntunda team said he didn’t know yet. Chance to…
Today marks the end of South Africa’s National Nutrition Week, an annual nutrition awareness campaign aimed at educating the public on healthy nutrition. Sadly, despite us commemorating National Nutrition week dutifully year in and year out, not enough has changed in terms of the nutritional outcomes of young children, particularly stunting from chronic malnutrition. Stunting…
Within seconds of walking into the room where the 14 members of the Bashise Ndlondlo Grow Great Champions (GGC) club are sitting, one can almost sense the spirit of togetherness in the air. All wearing their GGC T-shirts, their faces beam with pride as they explain how the club got its name. “Our coach’s surname…
The Reaphedisa Grow Great Champions CHW Club, which comprised Nicolene Mohale, Mavis Selotole and Elsinah Mohale achieved a feat that some would consider nearly impossible last year [2018]. The team was named Limpopo’s club of the year, despite it having only four members at the time. It is one of the smallest Grow Great Champions…
When she started working at Seapole Clinic years ago, Nicolene Mohale had no idea that she would accomplish what she has so far. “I started volunteering as a DOTS [Directly Observed Treatment Short Course] supporter for five years. Our community’s clinic committee asked that I take up the position as our village didn’t have anyone…
Rose Mpika, of the Siyakhulisa GGC team of CHWs, was elated when she found out that she was named Mpumalanga’s top performing CHW. “I was thrilled because it showed that the work I had been doing had at least received some recognition. That has given me the strength to continue doing what I do,” she…
On 13 May 2021, Grow Great released the findings of a study conducted with Stellenbosch on the nutritional status of children under five in Worcester, Breede Valley (Western Cape). The study set out to respond to two objectives: to describe the prevalence of stunting in children under five years of age by means of a…
Grow Great, a campaign with the aim to galvanise South Africa towards a national commitment to achieving zero stunting by 2030, is calling for submissions for its annual Grow Great journalist of the year awards. The competition that is now running for the third year seeks to honour journalists who have written on issues of…
Grow Great, a campaign with the aim to galvanise South Africa towards a national commitment to achieving zero stunting by 2030, is calling for submissions for its annual Grow Great Journalist of the Year awards. The competition that is now running for the 2nd year seeks to honour journalists who have written on issues of…