Mask sewing initiative injects over R1m into township economy

Loading player...

Seamstress Aletta Mashao and others do not spend much time thinking about distribution channels, market linkages or exchange rates. As the main breadwinners in their households, what they do know is that when they make face masks for the COVID-19 pandemic, they and their extended families have food on the table. But a recent consignment of masks exported to Belgium has taken township businesses to new heights.

Mashao and Tsotetsi are among the more than 270 township seamstresses who are part of YES’s (Youth Employment Service) Masks4All initiative, which has already seen nearly 120,000 masks made, and resulted in a desperately needed injection of over R1m into township businesses - a small fortune, given that these businesses were cut off from earning money during lockdown.

15 Aug 2020 9AM English South Africa News · Daily News

Other recent episodes

Trump announces SA leaders’ visit, Ramaphosa awaits green light

US President Donald Trump publicly announced SA leaders will visit him in Washington DC next week, but President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office says they are awaiting formal confirmation from the White House.

14 May 6AM 1 min

‘We need to prioritise South Africans’ — Malema wants local IDs for jobs

EFF leader Julius Malema says his party must put South Africans first when it comes to jobs, regardless of language, connections or background.

12 May 5AM 2 min

‘ANC must be like Kaizer Chiefs’: Mbalula tells supporters to stick with the party through disappointments

ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has urged supporters to remain loyal to the party even when it disappoints them, in the same way Kaizer Chiefs fans stand by their team through defeats. “Kaizer Chiefs supporters don’t abandon their team when it is beaten,” Mbalula said during a door-to-door campaign in ward…

5 May 6AM 2 min

DA, EFF VAT case a test for parliament

The DA and the EFF’s court case to block the 0.5 percentage point VAT hike from kicking in on May 1, now being argued in the Western Cape High Court, is a critical test of how parliament relates to executive decisions.

22 Apr 1PM 3 min

Chaos at WSU: One student killed, another wounded

Chaos erupted at Walter Sisulu University in Mthatha on Tuesday when a third-year male student was killed and another wounded when they were shot, allegedly by their residence manager. According to reports, students approached the manager to confront him about their grievances

15 Apr 9AM 2 min

All episodes