Hurley Centre' plans Dlaton clinic

The Denis Hurley Centre plans to build a clinic this year to assist destitute people living in Dalton.

Durban - The Denis Hurley Centre plans to build a clinic in the Dalton Hostel area, the centre’s annual meeting heard on Sunday.

Describing the conditions in the Dalton area as “shocking”, Denis Hurley Centre director, Raymond Perrier, said the clinic was one of the initiatives planned this year.

The centre would also work with the Human Sciences Research Council to find out how many homeless people there were in Durban and find out how they fell on hard times.

The centre will also seek partnerships with non-governmental organisations.

In a report on the centre’s activities last year, Perrier said it was helping on average 300 homeless people a day.

It had also provided about 50 000 meals to those in need.

And it had helped foreign nationals during last year’s xenophobic violence in Durban.

The centre spent R2.6 million and had a budget of R3.1m. To continue its operations, he said, it was also looking at getting funding from overseas donors.

Cardinal Wilfrid Napier said Africa had a large role to play in the world through the Catholic Church. He said 2016 had been declared the “Holy year of mercy” by Pope Francis.

“If you look around, there is no sense of mercy,” Napier said.

Activities at the centre, including education and skills training, were helping to make society better.

Daily News