August 2007: The President of The Republic of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, has signed the South African Red Cross Society and Legal Protection of Certain Emblems Act, 2007, into South African Law.

The Act has been warmly welcomed by the various parliamentary portfolios and stakeholders at public hearings, as a much-needed tool to provide statutory recognition for the South African Red Cross Society and statutory protection for the emblems of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

On the 8 May 2007, The South African Red Cross Society (RC, SARCS or The Society), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Society’s (IFRC) and the 184 member National Societies of the Movement, commemorate International Red Cross Red Crescent Day.

You can now make safe and secure online donation from the comfort of your home or office. Thanks to our sponsors that made this possible:

Thawte for providing a digital certificate that make our transactions safe and secure.
Nedbank for proving the payment gateway.

The Federation in South Africa, in conjunction with the South African Red Cross Society (SARCS) successfully launched the World Disasters Report 2006 at the Sandton Convention Centre, in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Thursday, 14 December 2006.

World AIDS Day was commemorated by the South African Red Cross Society’s national office by holding a candle-lighting and remembrance ceremony, followed by the launch of a promotional DVD highlighting the challenges of young people in the townships of Cape Town.

The South African Red Cross Society (Gauteng Region) in a joint venture with the Disaster Management Institute of Southern Africa (Southern Gauteng Region) proudly offer you an opportunity to attend a seminar aimed at covering various key aspects not previously presented at seminars, conferences and workshops, at an affordable price to delegates.

For this small contribution, patrons can expect an extravaganza for the senses – richly textured costumes and backdrops, and most importantly, beautiful voices and music. Mike Tainton, Acting Secretary General of The South African Red Cross Society, said: “We are delighted to be associated with the Cape Town Gilbert and Sullivan Society once again. Audiences will not be disappointed – the Cape Town G&S Society have outdone themselves, and it promises to be an unforgettable, magical evening!”

Gilbert and Sullivan feast at Artscape on 1 July Date: 23 June 2006 The Cape Town Gilbert and Sullivan Society and the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra have put together a mouth-watering feast of music and song, which will be performed at the Artscape Theatre on Saturday, 1 July 2006, at 8pm. The proceeds of the evening will go to The South African Red Cross Society, to support their efforts to assist the most vulnerable communities of the Western Cape.

All departments, branches and other structures will exhibit pictures of their activities in the communities.  Core areas such as disaster management, first-aid training, home-based care and youth activities will be highlighted.  There will be promotional literature as well as items on sale.

“Always needed – Always there” is the service commitment of the South African Red Cross Society, part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent humanitarian and healthcare movement.  Organisation development and a new strategic focus have created this challenging three-year renewable contract to lead, direct and implement the Red Cross programme in Gauteng and adjacent provinces, ensuring that volunteer training, resource mobilisation and skilled support staff are effectively co-ordinated in local communities.

The South African Red Cross Society will be receiving thousands of toys which were donated by the public (and will be matched by Shoprite and Checkers) to make a difference in the lives of the needy children they take care of and support. In addition to receiving the toys, Shoprite and Checkers will also hand over a cheque of monies collected at an auction held at the Shoprite and Checkers Supplier of the Year Awards.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is launching an appeal to cover long-term programmes for 2006 and 2007. The Federation is asking for almost 430 million Swiss francs (€ 278 million/US$333 million) to cover long term programmes in the field of health and disaster preparedness. These activities ultimately aim at strengthening the capacity of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in order to find sustainable ways of reducing the vulnerability of populations to disasters and other crises.

South African Red Cross Society “Celebration of Hope” Choir Festival in Stellenbosch, 25 November 2005
The South African Red Cross Society (SARCS) is hosting the Third Annual Choir festival, “Celebration of Hope”, which is taking place on the 25th November 2005 at the Paul Roos Hall in Stellenbosch.

The South African Red Cross (SARCS) salutes clients of its HIV/Aids community home‑based care project, who are living meaningful lives on treatment, with an exhibition of photographs , which will be held from Friday 2 December 2005 to Tuesday 10 January 2006 at the Iziko Good Hope Gallery, The Castle of Good Hope, Cape Town. 

You are cordially invited to attend the third annual South African Red Cross Society “Celebration of Hope” Choir Festival.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies today launched an appeal for R195 million (39 million Swiss francs or US$ 30 million) to assist 1.5 million people in seven countries in Southern Africa for nine months. Due to the seriousness of the situation, 1.16 million Swiss francs have already been released from the International Federation's disaster emergency relief fund to immediately scale up the operation, in particular focussing on food distribution in Malawi.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is increasing its preliminary appeal to more than R350 million (70 million Swiss francs) in order to bring assistance to some 150,000 families (750,000 people), victims of last Saturday’s devastating earthquake which hit the northern parts of Pakistan, India and Afghanistan. The funds will be used to provide food, tents, blankets, cooking sets and health care to survivors.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies has announced that it is in the process of preparing for an appeal to cater for one and half million people affected by the current food insecurity situation in the region. It is feared that approximately ten million people will be in need of food security support in the next few months, the Federation has announced during the launch of its World Disaster Report 2005 in Johannesburg.

Thank you for giving me this opportunity to speak on behalf of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, 181 national societies in the world and the more than 97 million volunteers worldwide who are the backbone of all meaningful community life-saving work during disasters. We welcome you once again to the launch of our 13th edition of the World Disaster Report which focuses on:

It is an honour and pleasure for me, to welcome you all, for the third year in a row, to another global launch of the World Disasters Report. The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies are to be applauded for having started this project, some thirteen years ago, and for continuing to expose us all to such valuable information. This is one of their laudable attempts to share information pertaining to our roles in limiting the effects of disasters on vulnerable communities.

Today’s information technology has helped aid agencies gather and store huge amounts of information, but do people affected by disasters get enough information? This year’s World Disasters Report 2005 focuses on information in disasters and considers the quality of the communication that takes place between those involved in disasters and on what impact this information has on the people caught up in a crisis. The Report was released today (5 October) by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Johannesburg and other places across the world.

For sheer power, nature has no rival. The shifting of tectonic plates off the west coast of Sumatra on 26 December 2004 triggered a magnitude 9 earthquake, dwarfing all since 1964. It started 30 kilometres beneath the Burma plate, raising the seabed by several metres. Within hours, the seismic shock and tsunamis had killed at least 145,000 people in countries thousands of kilometres apart, and destroyed the homes of up to 5 million people.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies today (October 5) launched an appeal for CHF 35 million (ZAR175 million, US27million)to assist 1.6 million people in seven countries in Southern Africa for nine months.

The South African Red Cross Society has launched an appeal to the South African public to donate funds to aid the victims of the New Orleans disaster.

There has always been  a belief that disaster management begins with information and   information technology has helped gather and store huge amounts of information, but do people affected by disasters get enough information?

Durban Metro Branch sent its able volunteers to the Virginia Air Show in July where they shared a tent with other paramedical staff.  Fortunately there were no injuries during the event, but the volunteers were constantly on the lookout for anyone needing assistance.

Three years ago Pastor Albert Mbenga, a refugee from the Congo (Kinshasa), had hardly any hope at all of being reunited with his family, but these days he and his wife Sophiane have lots of reason to smile.   The recent birth of their lively twin daughters – with very healthy lungs, we discovered when they visited SARCS’s National Office! – have made them feel even more at home here in their country of adoption. The South African Red Cross helped reunite Pastor Mbenga with his wife and 3 sons, Joel (16), Titus (15) and Jude (14) in March 2003.

On Sunday 28 August 2005 refugees from neighbouring African countries gathered in the boardroom of the South African Red Cross Society (SARCS) to be addressed by delegates from the ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross. 

SARCS's Tracing Department is part of a Cape Town network of service providers for refugees, called Tutumike  (the word means 'working together' in Swahili) and the network is collaborating with the Executive Mayor of Cape Town in a commemoration at Iziko South African Museums on Monday.

Today we speak of children trapped in a different kind of oppression, orphaned and rendered vulnerable by HIV and AIDS, marginalized by abject poverty, abused by the very adults they trust, while others are killed by parents who find the burden of life too heavy to bear.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies in southern Africaalong with the South African Red Cross Society will be launching an Orphans and other children made vulnerable by AIDS (OVC) campaign in Johannesburgat the Indaba Hotel on the 15th of June 2005.

The members of the board, management and staff of the South African Red Cross Society (SARCS) wishes to thank the South African public and the media for opening their hearts to the plight of their fellowmen in Southeast Asia and East Africa after the unprecedented devastation caused by the earthquake and tsunami of 26 December 2004.

Red Cross Societies from the SADC region and senior delegates from the international Red Cross and ICRC meet this weekend to determine the way forward for Red Cross activities in the Southern Africa Region.

The recent tsunami disaster that hit South East Asia and some parts of East Africawhich claimed nearly 290 000 lives and left a trail of destruction has proved to be a unifying factor across the globe. In South Africaa national effort was forged to demonstrate African humanity, the spirit of ubuntu, mobilisingthe entire nation through unprecedented coordinated efforts which saw the South African Red Cross Society (SARCS) raising over R20million within 2 months.

An earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale occurred at 2,400 meters below the surface at a mining area in Stilfontein and the two towns surrounding it, namely Klerksdorp and Orkney around midday on Wednesday 9 March 2005. The epicentre of the quake is located in the North West Province; some 200 km from Johannesburg.

Ms Mandisa Kalako-Williams, President of the South African Red Cross Society is participating with more than 100 representatives from the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement  in Hong Kong, to set out a long-term plan of action for survivors of the devastating earthquake and tsunami of last December 26. The disaster left more than 286,000 people dead, 7,900 missing and more than 1.6 million displaced in a dozen countries of south Asia and eastern Africa.

On Monday 28 February 2005 Former President FW de Klerk, his wife Elita and members of the staff of the FW de Klerk Foundation, visited SARCS’s National Office to hand over a cheque for R31,700 for the tsunami relief fund.

As stated in a message from Markku Niskala, Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, “the Asian earthquake and tsunamis have been the most devastating natural disaster in modern times.  Tens of thousands of people have lost their lives; millions are very dramatically affected in the region and around the world.”

The Southern Africa Partnership of Red Cross Societies is holding urgent talks in Johannesburg to discuss the effects and long-term impact of the drought in the SADC region and how this will impact on food security for millions of people.

Michael Jacobs, acting disaster relief co-ordinator, reports the following with regard to the fires in the Western Cape:

Tembelani Mafa is standing where his house used to be. Now everything is burned. Mafa was visiting Umtata in Eastern Cape by the time of the fire and came back to Langa on Monday to discover there was nothing left.

The South African Red Cross Society (SARCS) in partnership with the Federation Regional Delegation in Harare hosted the Southern African launch of the World Disaster Report.

Celebrating International Volunteers Day, 5TH December, is an opportunity to reflect on the good deeds being carried out by over 600 South African Red Cross Society (SARCS) volunteers who are always there to strengthen the needs of communities in times of calamity or in times of despair.

The World Disasters Report compiled and distributed annually by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies will be launched at a media conference in Johannesburg on Thursday 28th October 2004.

For over 100 years the South African Red Cross Society has been committed to come to the assistance of the vulnerable whilst protecting their dignity...

Taking initiative and translating it into action is at the heart of the Red Cross Movement.
At the end of 2003, an enthusiastic Eddie Malcolm, a member of the Dwars Rivier Walking Club, came to the South African Red Cross (SARCS) with the idea that he wanted to walk to raise funds for the Society...