The South African embassy in Sofia is among the country’s missions abroad joining in a new campaign, Nelson Mandela Day, called by the South African government, the Nelson Mandela Foundation and the 46664 Campaign.
 
The campaign, timed around the former South African president’s birthday on July 18, is based on a call by current president Jacob Zuma for all South Africans and the world to spend 67 minutes of their time performing duties or activities useful to the community.
 
This is to mark the fact that Mandela, the anti-apartheid hero who became South Africa’s first democratically-elected president in May 1994, dedicated 67 years of his life to the service of humanity, fighting for peace, justice, development and freedom.         
 
"Mandela Day is an annual celebration of Nelson Mandela’s life and a global call to action for people to recognise their individual power to make an imprint and change the world around them," the South African embassy in Sofia said in a media statement.
 
Mandela said, "We would be honoured if such a day can serve to bring together people around the world to fight poverty and promote peace and reconciliation."
 
A global movement for positive change begins with small actions, the media statement said.
 
Mandela Day was created to inspire people to embrace Mandela's values and make an imprint through service to their communities.   
 
"We hope to empower people to find opportunities that address social issues such as human rights and civil liberties, hunger and poverty, education and literacy, health issues and medicine, the environment, ecology and energy conservation, and social enterprise and economic development," the statement said.