JOHANNESBURG, May 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Maletsatsi Foundation launches its Virtual Volunteer Campaign: Mandela Day Edition, inviting global citizens to transform 67 minutes of intention into a year of sustained action for children who cannot wait.
South Africa’s child protection crisis runs deeper than most people realise, and the numbers tell a story that is difficult to ignore.
The country is home to an estimated 2.7 million orphans. Of those, fewer than 400,000 are in any form of formal foster placement. At any given time, only around 550 children are registered as adoptable and awaiting placement. At the end of 2024, the Foster Child Grant, the primary state mechanism supporting children in care, lapsed for nearly a third of all recipients, an all-time high.
These are not only abandoned infants. They are toddlers, school-age children, and teenagers, each removed from their homes due to abandonment, abuse, neglect, trafficking, or circumstances beyond anyone’s control. The need does not just overshadow the response. It dwarfs it.
The Maletsatsi Foundation exists in that gap, caring for children who arrive at every stage of childhood, each with their own story, and each deserving of far more than a statistic. Ahead of Nelson Mandela International Day 2026, the Foundation is calling on the global community to respond.
Nelson Mandela International Day, officially recognised by the United Nations and observed annually on 18 July, is a global call to action rooted in Mandela’s belief that each person holds the power to change the world around them.
This year’s theme, “It’s still in our hands to combat poverty and inequity,” arrives at a moment of acute global urgency. In an increasingly polarised world shaped by climate change, conflict, and displacement, the need for initiatives that promote solidarity, transcend difference, and embrace shared humanity has never been greater. The Maletsatsi Foundation is answering that call.
Today, the Foundation launches its Virtual Volunteer Campaign: Mandela Day Edition, an international initiative that reimagines Mandela Day’s 67 minutes of service as the entry point into a year of sustained global civic participation.
The campaign invites individuals and corporate employees across the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand to spend their 67 minutes on 18 July becoming Virtual Volunteers by committing to $15 per month for a full year.
For most global supporters, $15 is a negligible monthly cost. For a child in the Foundation’s care, it funds a full day of structured, consistent care within a family environment. It is not charity. It is continuity, stability, and the foundation required for long-term outcomes.
Corporate participants are encouraged to match employee sign-ups on a dollar-for-dollar basis, transforming individual commitment into sustained institutional impact. This is not a once-off campaign. It is a structured, recurring investment in child protection, with measurable outcomes over a 12-month period.
“Mandela Day asks us to give 67 minutes,” says Tiffini Hein, Founder and Chair of The Maletsatsi Foundation. “We are asking people to let those 67 minutes change how they think about the other 364 days. The children in our care do not need a gesture once a year. They need the world to decide, in a sustained and deliberate way, that they matter. $15 a month is that decision made real.”
The Virtual Volunteer Campaign is built on a simple but powerful premise: Mandela Day should not end at minute 68.
How to Participate:
Dedicate 67 minutes on 18 July 2026
Commit to $15 per month for 12 months
Sign Up Here
Corporates: match employee contributions dollar-for-dollar
Share the campaign: #MandelaDay2026 #MakeEveryDayAMandelaDay
#VirtualVolunteer
The ask is simple. The impact is measurable. The responsibility is shared.
About The Maletsatsi Foundation
The Maletsatsi Foundation is a South African child protection and family-based care organisation (NPC No: 2020/257077/08 | NPO No: 254-968 | PBO No: 930070879 | Level 1 B-BBEE) providing transitional residential care for abandoned, abused, and neglected children while long-term permanency is determined through reunification or formal adoption.
Its model intentionally opposes institutionalisation, prioritising emotional attachment, stability, and family-centred care during the most vulnerable periods of a child’s life. Working alongside accredited social workers and child protection professionals, the Foundation addresses both the immediate crisis and its systemic drivers, including poverty, gender-based violence, and the absence of sustainable support structures for women in crisis.
The Foundation operates three residential care homes and manages multiple community-facing sub-programmes including Team Zonke, Zonke Izingane, and Archie’s Archives, each reflecting its core commitment to children, families, and community resilience. The Foundation is funded entirely through donations and partnerships.
To support the Foundation or explore partnership opportunities, visit:
www.maletsatsifoundation.co.za
About Nelson Mandela International Day
Nelson Mandela International Day is observed annually on 18 July and is officially recognised by the United Nations as a global call to action. It invites individuals, communities, and organisations to reflect on Mandela’s values and take meaningful steps to combat poverty and inequality. This year’s theme, “It’s still in our hands,” reflects the urgency of collective action in response to widening inequality, climate displacement, conflict, and social fragmentation.
Media Contact
Phindile Nxumalo
Maletsatsi Foundation
Communications & Partnerships
maletsatsifoundation.co.za
Email: [email protected]
@themaletsatsifoundation
https://web.facebook.com/themaletsatsifoundation/
NPC Registration Number: 2020/257077/08
NPO Registration Number: 254-968
PBO Reference Number: 930070879
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/f17fbdd6-3f0c-4d79-9fd8-ced41053f81f
