“Let’s be responsible and save our future together”: Awareness Campaign in uMhlathuze, South Africa

Together with the City of uMhlathuze, in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, the uMhlathuze Water Stewardship Partnership (UWASP) launched an information campaign with the overarching slogan “Let’s be responsible…” in December 2021. The campaign, which is broadcasted through social media and on GagasiFM in both English an isiZulu, aims to create awareness around being a responsible citizen. This includes focusing on the protection of the environment through using water sparingly and not littering, but also by wearing masks and getting vaccinated to curb the spread of the current Covid-19 pandemic as well as other communicable diseases.

The campaign will continue and will be rolled out in several primary and secondary schools in the partnership area. The schools awareness campaign will also include the provision of personal protective equipment, including masks and hand sanitizers, as well as bottled water. Besides the schools campaign, a special information sharing campaign will also target up to 500 seasonal farm workers for improved awareness, e.g. on environmental protection. Through the different messages of the campaign, the City of uMhlathuze together with UWASP aim to improve responsible citizenship and awareness around water use, safe communication behaviour and the importance of vaccination in the area.