On International Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) Awareness Day, September 9, community leaders and residents filled the Faith & Hope Foundation Green Zone in extension 23 for a pointed and purposeful dialogue on Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.
Convened by the South African Alcohol Policy Alliance (SAAPA SA), the DGMT Rethink Your Drink Campaign and the Faith & Hope Foundation, the gathering focused on the irreversible impact of alcohol exposure in pregnancy and the practical steps required to prevent it.
Clinic sisters from Ga-Rankuwa, community development workers, local residents, Gogta staff, Futures Generation members and Community Oriented Substance Use Programme (COSUP) representatives took part. Discussions moved beyond statistics to the lived reality of FASD and the systems needed to protect unborn children.
The central message cut through clearly FASD is not the burden of women alone. Partners, families, communities, health services and government share equal responsibility for prevention and support.
Practical guidance offered to participants included seeking professional counselling, strengthening family and community networks, engaging in rehabilitation programmes, and replacing harmful drinking patterns with healthier alternatives.
As the session ended, organizer’s left little room for complacency. One day of dialogue, they stressed, counts for nothing unless it hardens into daily action supporting expectant parents, confronting risky drinking cultures, and ensuring no child inherits a preventable lifelong disability. In Ga-Rankuwa the challenge is now public awareness must become protection, and every resident has a role to play.
