The animated short video is a collaborative effort with all of Magna Carta's offices on the continent. The animation will be translated into some South African and African languages.

According to Magna Carta, there are now more than 3 000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 across the continent, with a third of the cases are in South Africa. 60 deaths have been reported so far, with 2 in South Africa.

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that South Africa will go into a strict 21-day lockdown in an attempt to avoid a "catastrophe of huge proportions".

"When the outbreak was limited to China, everyone was disconnected," says Moliehi Molekoa, managing director of Magna Carta. "But now that it is here, there is an overflow of information. However, most of it is in English."

"Africa is a continent with high linguistic diversity and we wanted to make the lifesaving information more accessible in a language of choice," adds Molekoa.

"A creative approach was warranted. It is difficult to hold the attention of an adult when you are trying to communicate basics around washing hands in a language they may or may not understand. Similarly, access to technology has meant that children also hear about the pandemic, leading them to worry about themselves, their family, pets and friends getting ill," Molekoa says.

Magna Carta has announced that the animated short video, which is ideal to share on social media platforms, will be translated into 20 African languages commonly spoken on the continent.

Magna Carta will also make it available to anyone on the continent, even outside its network, to translate and add a language of choice for further distribution to the communities.

"Affording it a wider platform will enable other communities to contribute to it creatively," adds Molekoa. "We take our role as storytellers seriously. Any piece of communication, especially during an outbreak, must be honest, accurate and direct and be able to deliver the message in a way and in a language, which minimises anxiety and fear."

The video can be viewed by the public here. 

For more information, visit www.magna-carta.co.za. You can also follow Magna Carta on Twitter.