Authored on
2022-07-21

Community members have come to the aid of a vulnerable family that has been sleeping in the open at the DRC informal settlement at Swakopmund.

The good samaritans, among other deeds, constructed a two-bedroom shack and donated a mobile toilet, a tent, blankets, food, and other necessities.

A video of two children living in horrible conditions under a roofless makeshift structure went viral on social media this week. 

nbc News managed to track down the children, who are part of a six-member family.

Gebhardine Kaira is the mother.

Between 2001 and 2006, the Kairas owned a formal house in Tulinawa, Mondesa.

However, the family decided to sell the property to settle their water and rates and taxes debt to the municipality.

The family has since been renting shacks at the DRC informal settlement, but often the parents end up unable to afford rent.

Before she became a senior citizen, Kaira used to work as a waitress, while her husband still relies on temporary jobs at construction sites.

"I can't afford to pay the N$200 to pay the rent, so I decided to go to the municipality to get my own plot, and they gave me this plot. It was Sunday, and last Sunday I decided to come and build here, and I don't have the stuff to make it a home. So, I collected material from people to build, and I thought, I will make it and finish it, but I couldn't, and we slept here because if we go where we were, they will take our stuff."

To make some money, Kaira went out earlier this week to do domestic work, and that is when two workers from the municipality took a video of her children and their poor living conditions.

Five business owners from the Smart Guy Social Club responded to the family's plight and constructed a two-bedroom shack for them, while other community members also made donations.

Kaira's dream is to set up her own tailoring project, but she lacks the money to buy a machine.

She believes impoverished communities like the DRC need to be empowered through sustainable projects.

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Author
Renathe Rengura