Sizwe Sibiya
The National Arts Council (NAC) and SABC have announced a concert to raise funds for communities affected by the devastating floods across KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape.
Arise Benefit Concert – Sisonke (We Are Together) will be held at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on 18 June.
With a capacity of over 85,000, the stadium is one of the biggest in South Africa, and will set the stage for over 30 artists as they try to raise R10 million in ticket sales and pledges.
In April, days of heavy rain caused flooding which left at least 435 dead and displaced hundreds of thousands more.
“54 (people) reported missing, 55 injured, 6,278 left homeless, 17,438 households destroyed,121,687 people affected and 7,490 people living in shelters,” said NAC in a statement on Wednesday, as it announced the concert.
As the floods began to subside, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced measures to provide aid to those affected.
However, KZN Premier Sihle Zikalala this week released a statement saying, “the R1 billion relief fund set aside was not enough to address the extent of the damage and devastation caused by the floods.”
Meanwhile the artists and ticket prices will be announced in a media conference to be held in Johannesburg on Wednesday.
