Project: Children of the Dawn (COTD) - Matatiele
MAMA: Nabila   
Started in: 2009  
Partner since: 2013 
Location: Matatiele, Eastern Cape
Number of children: 96 (supported by MAMAS), 117 (total) 
Special because: The children of COTD can join spelling bees, arts and crafts programmes, and various sports codes such rope-skipping and hiking. 

Children of the Dawn operates in the least developed regions, in one of the poorest provinces of South Africa: Eastern Cape. More and more children live in the rural town of Matatiele, and surrounding rural villages where there’s a shortage of almost everything such as water and electricity. The unemployment rate is high and so is the HIV prevalence.

Children of the Dawn works to provide 117 children with daily and practical care during their school years. Almost all of these children have lost one or even both parents, mostly to AIDS. Children of the Dawn watches over them, provides healthy food, after-school care, fun activities and personal attention and guidance. This way, these children can be children again and have the same opportunities as every other child.

Children of the Dawn started in Mathabatha, Limpopo in 2002 as a pilot-project to support communities in remote rural areas through the care of Orphaned and Vulnerable Children (OVC). Now, the project has grown into a professional initiative which operates in eight rural areas within 5 of the 9 provinces of South African provinces namely; Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Free State, the Eastern Cape and Kwazulu-Natal.

Children's Fund MAMAS supports 4 of the 8 Children of the Dawn’s projects: Matatiele and Mpumaze on a large scale, and Ermelo and Lenyenye on a smaller scale.