Mawandi The Best Of South Africa Online Lifestyle and Business Directory.

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Mawandi takes no responsibility whatsoever for the legitimacy or otherwise of any of the below mentioned organisations and advise and urge any and all donors to exercise due diligence in deciding whether or not to contribute or make any donation.

Please contact us should you have any suggestions or wish to have a registered charity added to the above list. From time to time the links above will break and need to be replaced – please advise us if you find any link points to an offensive site or needs to be updated.

GREAT LINKS

RECOMMENDED LISTINGS

CANSA

CHOC (Childhood Cancer Foundation SA)

Pink Drive - Bringing breast cancer screening and education to the women of South Africa.

There are hundreds and hundreds of projects/charities out there that people simply don't get to hear about. These are the people/projects that need your donations and support. These projects dont have resources to develop websites or raise funds and as a result people simply dont get to hear about them. Well maybe this site can help a little...

We are developing a directory of South African projects and charities. The goal is to give every idea a free platform and a gateway to the world via our web portal. Please send me your contact details, tell me a little about what it is you do & what you would like to do, include one or two pictures and leave the rest up to me.

Send the details to charity@mawandi.co.za

QUASAR TRUST

A quadriplegic is a person who, through disease or accident, has lost total or partial use of his limbs. The major cause if this disability is accident. The groups of people typically affected are the young and active.

When someone has lost the use of his limbs, it does not mean that he has lost his spirit of independence. In 1981 a group of quadriplegics pooled there resources and purchased a house in Parow to accommodate themselves styled " Quassar House."

For these quadriplegics it, it was a dream come true seeing that it was the first time in many years that they could live independently and be in a position to make their own decisions and live and function in the community.

The manner in which the new quadriplegic residents set themselves up as mature and independent functional members of the local community, later became a demonstration model on how independent disabled people can live and function in the community.

JOBS FOR DISABLED

Guide to Building Confidence for the Disabled
03 December 2009 at 06h00 - JumpStart and The Star Workplace are giving away 50 copies of the JumpStart career and life skills guide.

The following excerpt on dealing with disabilities in the workplace comes from the career guide:

"The Employment Equity Act requires employers to target people with disabilities in order to make the country's labour force more representative of the South African population. South Africa has the only constitution in the world that recognises the rights of people with disabilities. In addition, the Equality Act and Section S of the building Regulations Act endorse the rights of people with disabilities to live, work and play in South Africa."

With 95 percent of South African people with disabilities unemployed, disability constitutes a huge burden on society and government.

But this need not be the case. Real access can lead to more employment, more earning and more spending. The goal should be the natural and unhesitant inclusion of people with disabilities into society by viewing people with disabilities as citizens that can learn, earn, spend and pay taxes.

Disability is defined as a long-term or recurring physical or mental impairment that substantially limits an individual's existence in society.

Physical disabilities - include loss of or damage to muscles, nerves, skin or bones. They lead to difficulty in mobility or performing daily activities. Some example include cerebral palsy, spinal chord injury, cystic fibrosis, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy and pot-polio paralysis.

Mental disabilities - people often fail to distinguish between mental disabilities and mental illness. The distinction is that when mental illness is managed by therapy or medication, it need not be disabling.

On the other hand, psychiatric, cognitive or learning disabilities, depression, severe head trauma and unmanaged conditions like bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, can be disabling.

Sensory disabilities - include blindness or partial sightedness; deafness and hearing difficulties.

Invisible disabilities - epilepsy and diabetes are common "invisible" disabilities. Both can be controlled/managed with medication.

Albinism - is not a disability though people with albinism often identify with people with disabilities due to the discrimination they experience. Albinism is an inherited condition whereby a person can't produce normal colouring of the skin, hair and eyes. People are very sensitive to the sun.

Job opportunities for people with disabilities

There's a strong tendency to stereotype; to assume that people with disabilities can't do certain jobs because of their disabilities. And the majority of people with disabilities tend to work at lower levels.

For instance, it's common to find blind or partially sighted switchboard operators. This is why "reasonable accommodation" is crucial.

Reasonable accommodation requires an employer to provide (within reason) the aid or assistance that will allow a person with disability to function normally: software that will enable a blind person to read and operate a computer, or an accessible workplace for persons with physical disabilities.

Tips for job seekers with disabilities:

# Don't allow yourself to be pushed into a stereotypical career path.

# If you're studying further, ensure that your course is relevant and that the skills you acquire are of value in the workplace.

# Very few recruitment agencies successfully specialise in disability placement. Use "normal" agencies. They too need to learn about "disability".

# Know that, like everyone else, you will have to prove your value. Ensure, for example, that the format, content, grammar, spelling, focus and professionalism of your CV are perfect.

# In your CV, feel free to mention your disability under "Personal Details". But draw attention to your abilities, competencies and experience - your disability should be largely irrelevant.

# Understand that there may be those in the job market who are reluctant to hire you. Be assertive enough to recognise that reluctance is largely based on ignorance, and challenge it.

# Be confident - you have the same rights as any other jobseeker."

JumpStart is sponsored by Deloitte and is distributed free of charge to schools nationwide. Send your name and address details to info@jumpstarthandbook.co.za with JumpStart/The Star Give-away in the subject line and a copy will be posted to you.