Dear Fellow South African, 

On this Saturday, 18 July, South Africa will join the nations of the world in celebrating Nelson Mandela International Day. As we approach this day, we consider not only the acts of service that millions will perform on that day, but also the deeper purpose that Madiba intended the marking of his birthday to serve. 

In 2009, the United Nations General Assembly declared 18 July to be Nelson Mandela International Day. This was not a South African occasion that the world chose to notice. It is a global day of action to harness Madiba’s legacy in service of a challenge that confronts most nations: the fight against poverty, inequality and injustice. 

This year, we ask every South African to heed that call. Let us give our 67 minutes through acts of service that feed the hungry, comfort the lonely or support the elderly. Let us lend our skills and time to the organisations that serve our communities every day. These acts matter because they change lives. 

But Madiba was clear that overcoming poverty is not an act of charity, but an act of justice. So on this Mandela Day, let us also recommit ourselves to the difficult task of ending poverty and inequality in our country and in our world. 

Among other things, this means transforming the rules and institutions that govern the world's finances so that they serve the needs of developing economies, not only the wealthiest. It means ensuring that the commitments made to the countries bearing the heaviest burden of climate change are honoured and strengthened. 

Through our G20 Presidency last year, we placed the issue of inequality firmly on the global agenda. We are now working with other countries and institutions to establish an International Panel on Inequality to monitor global inequality, assess its causes and consequences and recommend the policies needed to reverse it. No nation can overcome inequality alone; we need coordinated multilateral action, rooted in solidarity and shared responsibility.

As a country, we must use Mandela Day to refocus our efforts to tackle poverty and inequality. We must sustain our investment in the education and health of our people, prioritising the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable. We must continue to direct energy and resources towards strengthening early learning in our schools and completing the overhaul of our skills development system. At the same time, we must continue to build a health care system that provides quality care to all who need it, regardless of their ability to pay. 

To tackle poverty and inequality, we must ensure that our laws and policies protect workers and that our regulatory environment encourages investment. At the same time, we are continuing to improve our social protection system and helping people build livelihoods, gain skills and find work through our public and social employment programmes. 

The acts of service we perform this Saturday are not merely symbolic gestures, disconnected from the harder business of building institutions, driving investment, and changing systems and policies. They are part of the same effort.

So this Mandela Day, as we serve our communities, let us also renew our resolve to tackle the poverty and inequality that make such service necessary in the first place.

Madiba taught us that building a just, caring and inclusive society is not the work of governments alone. It is the work of ordinary people performing extraordinary acts of compassion, courage and service. As Madiba said: “It is now in your hands.”

Let the acts of service that we undertake this week be part of the foundation on which we build a better country and a better world for all.

With best regards,