Nelson Mandela Day

Every year on 18 July South Africans together with the international community honour our former president and international icon Nelson Mandela in the celebration of Nelson Mandela International Day. This day has since its launch in 2009 inspired individuals to take action to help change the world for the better, and in doing so build a global movement for good.

It initially started with people being asked to give 67 minutes of their time and later moved away from an ad hoc and individualised initiative towards addressing issues affecting our society. This year marks the 10th anniversary of Nelson Mandela Day and to commemorate this milestone the Nelson Mandela Foundation has launched a new approach and strategy titled Mandela Day: The Next Chapter.

The strategy outlines a new approach over the next ten years that will significantly change the manner in which the International Nelson Mandela Day impacts people’s lives. This means that the focus will be on harnessing research, analysis and dialogue to build sustainable impact for those that need help the most.

It identifies five key focus areas for global partnerships to focus on to have strategic impact. These areas are education and literacy; food and nutrition; shelter; sanitation and active citizenship, and they are in line with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).