EMPOWERING PEOPLE The primary focus of Anglo American’s CSI expenditure is on education, health, community development, enterprise development, arts and culture as well as sports
For the tenth time, diversified miner Anglo American has been ranked as one of South Africa’s leading companies in corporate social investment (CSI) by CSI and sustainability consultancy Trialogue.
Every year, Trialogue asks corporate and nonprofit organisation (NPO) respondents to name the three corporates that have the greatest development impact through their CSI programmes.
In 2014, 99 companies took part in the consultancy’s CSI survey.
Anglo American Chairman’s Fund chairperson Norman Mbazima says, while the acknowledgement attests to not only the positive perceptions pertaining to Anglo American’s impact as a company, Trialogue’s initiative also showcases the companies that are successfully communicating their programmes and achieving reputational benefits as a result.
He points out that in 2014, respondents to Trialogue’s survey agreed that Anglo American was achieving the greatest development impact, with 26 corporate mentions and 24 NPO mentions.
“This was in line with results from 2013, in which Anglo American was voted as the NPO’s favourite,” Mbazima says.
Anglo American’s total CSI spend in South Africa for 2013/14 was R643-million including group companies and the Chairman’s Fund.
The primary focus of this expenditure was on education, health, community development, enterprise development, arts and culture as well as sports.
Beneficiaries of the company’s CSI spend include Sisters of Mercy Educational Trust, which is an international order of nuns who are devoted to building an educational foundation for previously disadvantaged children; Saint Mary’s Development and Care Centre, which provides children with the support they need to grow up healthy and equipped for life; the Western Cape Primary Science Programme, which is a teacher in-service training and support organisation that has been working since 1985 to address the inequalities in education in South Africa; and the Free State University Schools Partnership Project, which provides Free State-based grade 10, 11, and 12 subject teachers with mentors for physical science, mathematics and accounting and visits these teachers every week in their classrooms to provide mentorship, coaching and training to ultimately improve teaching standards at schools.