A call to action

The Noah story starts in 2002 in KwaZulu-Natal. Dr Gregory Ash and a team of like-minded individuals took note of the growing number of secondary victims of the AIDS pandemic – the children who are left behind. And so, the very first Ark was started in the Swayimane district.

The idea was not simply to put up orphanages. It was rather to empower communities to take care of their orphaned and vulnerable children, since research shows that orphanages do not work in the African context.

One of the first steps toward empowerment is helping to get these children registered for social grants. It was soon realised that the scale of malnutrition was much larger than anticipated, and feeding schemes became an urgent priority. Today, most of the Arks have nutrition programmes and/or community food gardens, and many have pre-school and after-school care programmes.

There are currently 101 Arks in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, and 25 511 children are being cared for. An additional 6 Arks have been successfully fledged and continue to operate as Noah Alumni.

Timeline