News Bulletin of 14 September 2026, 11am

Ford Motor Company Africa and the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund have handed over 300 handmade bears to children receiving treatment at Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital in Johannesburg.
Ford employees made the bears as part of the Mandela Bear Magic campaign, linked to the fund’s Mandelathon initiative.
The handover took place on September 9 and aims to give young patients comfort and companionship while they receive treatment.
The partnership also includes two vehicles donated by Ford to help transport patients to medical care.

South Africans are being invited to support a global literacy campaign aiming to put books in the hands of 500,000 children.
The World Literacy Foundation’s One Book at a Time campaign allows donors to choose a region, with a donation of about R162 providing a book to a child.
The foundation also provides solar-powered tablets with e-books and trains teachers to support reading in schools.
The campaign comes as literacy remains a major challenge in South Africa, where 81 percent of Grade Four learners cannot read for meaning.

Founder of the Heal Our Children initiative, Malcolm Johnson, is leading a team walking from Richards Bay to Cape Town to raise funds for children receiving care at Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital.
The Heal Our Children Marathon Walk began on September 7, with the team expected to reach Cape Town in mid-October.
The fundraiser supports The Children’s Hospital Trust, which helps improve healthcare for seriously ill and injured children.