TONGAAT HULETT PARTNERSHIP WITH JOBS FUND CONTINUES TO DELIVER SIGNIFICANT BENEFITS TO RURAL COMMUNITIES

A partnership between Tongaat Hulett and The Jobs Fund to accelerate socio-economic transformation in rural communities, which began in 2014, has proven its worth with more than 5 800 people still benefitting from the project.

The initiative, which created more than 3 000 jobs in Northern KwaZulu-Natal – an area of significant unemployment and poverty – has delivered significant on-going benefits to thousands of people who would otherwise have limited sources of income. About R82-million has been distributed directly to beneficiaries in the past four production seasons – a significant amount given that it excludes the wage earnings generated by the project.

Tongaat Hulett CEO Gavin Hudson said: “Tongaat has for many years invested in surrounding communities to help address pressing socio-economic challenges. This initiative is a clear example of how business can work together with government in a sustainable manner to not only address unemployment, but to deliver ongoing benefits to communities.

“We are delighted that more than two years after the completion of the project, it continues to make a significant impact by providing incomes to thousands of people while at the same time productively farming sugarcane. For us, it was money well spent and that is most gratifying.”

Najwah Allie-Edries, The Jobs Fund Deputy Director General: Employment Facilitation commented: “The Jobs Fund recognises the importance of developing strategic partnerships that result in innovative solutions to our country’s unemployment crisis. It is inspiring to know that our partnership with Tongaat Hulett has yielded a sustainable income source to communities most in need. The Jobs Fund is also deeply appreciative of the communities’ willingness to partner with us, too often they have been let down, without their co-operation we would not have had a viable project.”

Tongaat and The Jobs Fund partnership together invested a total of R305 million in the initiative. It resulted in almost 11 000 hectares of sugarcane being planted over four years, with education, training and food security forming critical elements of the project.

Hudson said Tongaat was committed to making an ongoing contribution to social upliftment, rural development and job creation, particularly at this challenging time with the Covid-19 pandemic which was having a devastating impact on the economy.

“It is now more important than ever that companies such as ours step up and play their part. We are doing so in a variety of ways and the sustainability of the initiative with the Jobs Fund is an important element of how we believe business can support communities,” he said.

Project Background

The project ran from 2014 to 2018. Key highlights of the initiative included:
• A total of 10 972 hectares of sugarcane was planted, made up of 10 082 and 890 hectares of dryland and irrigated sugarcane, respectively;
• The creation of 3,019 new jobs in less than four years, against an initial commitment to create 2,874 jobs;
• Jointly funded by Tongaat Hulett, which contributed R155 million, and The Jobs Fund with R150 million.
• Tongaat Hulett spent a further R103.2 million on additional contributions, which included community social facilitation work, overall project management and Socio-economic Development (SED) initiatives.
• Working in multiple land tenure arrangements and traditional authority structures, including both primary cooperatives and community trusts, with a total of some 5 897 member beneficiaries;
• Supported by the Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, the KZN Provincial Planning Commission and the Ingonyama Trust Board
• A total of 1,286 local community members were trained in a range of qualifications, from multi-year tertiary qualifications and certificate courses in farm management to on-the-job training.
• SED initiatives included food security, education and training, access to water for communities and livestock and cattle management, implemented through a range of partnerships with multiple stakeholders, including community members, Municipalities, Traditional Councils, the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education, and the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
• Partnerships to address skills upliftment and training included the Owen Sitole College of Agriculture, the South African Sugar Research Institute and the Mfolozi Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) College.

Dr Jeff McCarthy, the project’s independent monitoring and evaluation specialist, said the rural development and business process lessons of the project were particularly important, and the project could be regarded as best practice.

“Despite an extraordinarily difficult local land and political environment, project managers have been supported by stable partners with a long-term outlook. The local managers, in turn, have used a style that is sensitive to the community and they have implemented bespoke solutions to the unique characteristics of the area.

“Overall, communities have been pleased with the use of local labour, particularly with the unusually high proportion of women workers that have been engaged.”

COMMITTED TO COMMUNITY: HEALTH PARTNERS IN A FUNCTIONAL COMMUNITY PROJECT DURING COVID-19

While great uncertainty remains about the tough times ahead, the opportunity for business to band together and assist those at the forefront of the fight against the pandemic and malnutrition is equally significant. One such partnership comes from Tongaat Hulett, NCP Alcohols, Spring Lights Gas (SLG), Nampak Rigid Plastics and Southern Lodestar Foundation in creating a functional project to be implemented in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) – “Committed to Community: Health Partners during COVID-19”.

The aim of the project is to donate 250 000 litres of hand sanitiser to all provincial hospitals and clinics throughout KZN with the assistance of the Department of Health. It will also ensure that 60 000kg of instant porridge is distributed in areas with children in desperate need for support. The Department of Education feeds 2.4 million learners under the school feeding programme and 1.3 million have been defined as vulnerable. The closure of schools because of COVID-19 has increased the vulnerability of children from food insecure households facing severe economic hardships.

Tongaat Hulett has four sugar mills in KZN and works extensively with farmers in the province, many of whom are small-scale and land reform growers. Tongaat Hulett will supply the molasses for the manufacturing of the sanitiser and make use of its milling facilities to distribute the sanitiser to clinics and hospitals. The supply of molasses towards the project will go a long way in assisting the production of the much needed sanitisers.

“Our top priority as Tongaat Hulett is the health and safety of all our stakeholders. As a company, we have put measures in place to limit the effect of Covid-19 on our employees and stakeholders in all six countries where we operate. We have also put in place sound business systems to ensure that business continues during the lockdown period” said Simon Harvey, MD: Tongaat Hulett Sugar Operations.

The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown the world in turmoil on a scale never seen before. Here in South Africa, the country has entered a 21-day national lockdown to flatten the curve of infection and stop the spread of the virus.

NCP Alcohols produces fermented alcohol to various industries, including pharmaceutical markets, and will contribute to the production of the alcohol, blending of the sanitiser and drumming as part of the joint effort.

SLG supplies gas nationally with most of its customers situated in KZN, providing environmentally clean and cost-effective energy and tailored technical service to this project. The energy used to produce the alcohol in the sanitizer will be supplied by SLG.

Nampak Rigid Plastics is the largest diversified packaging manufacturer in the region and are contributing the drums into which the sanitizer will be packed. The company invests significant time and resources into the development of sustainable products and also provides general support to communities located near its facilities.

Southern Lodestar Foundation assists with nutritional intervention amongst the most vulnerable communities in South Africa and neighbouring countries. The Foundation has partnered with Millhouse International to develop a highly nutritious instant porridge – high in protein, vitamins and minerals.

The rollout of the” Committed to Community: Health Partners during COVID-19” project will take place with the cooperation of the Department of Health in KZN. “COVID-19 has brought to focus the importance of public private partnerships in addressing societal challenges in the province,” said Dr Sandile Tshabalala, Head of Department within the Department of Health. “The sanitizer will slow the spread of the virus and the instant porridge will be allocated to children and vulnerable households. As a Department, we welcome these significant contributions, and continue to encourage all our social partners to join hands with us in fighting the pandemic.”

TONGAAT HULETT AND SOUTHERN LODESTAR FOUNDATION TEND TO HYGIENE AND NUTRITION NEEDS IN WAKE OF CORONAVIRUS

With the coronavirus putting severe strain on hygiene and nutrition resources, agro-processing group Tongaat Hulett and Southern Lodestar Foundation are distributing thousands of hand sanitiser kits and instant porridge packs in KwaZulu-Natal.

As the government battles the possibility of a runaway coronavirus outbreak, Tongaat Hulett and the Foundation are working with the KZN Department of Health to safeguard the health of several communities in and around the Maidstone, Darnall, Amatikulu and Felixton sugar mills on the North Coast.

Tongaat Hulett has allocated R445 000 for the procurement and distribution of 7 500 hand sanitiser kits containing antibacterial soap, hand sanitiser and tissues. These will be distributed through the Tongaat clinic, Ndwedwe clinic, Stanger hospital, Ngwelezane hospital and Catherine Booth hospital which are frequented by Tongaat Hulett employees, their families and stakeholders.

The Southern Lodestar Foundation which supports communities in the fields of health, nutrition, physical activity and nutrition education, will distribute 2 000 instant porridge packs to indigent children living around the five health centres.

The closure of schools in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic has had a negative impact on learners who relied on school feeding schemes for a daily meal. Thus, many children have been going without nutritious food.

Sne Ndlela, Socio-economic Development Executive, said: “As a business that works in various communities, we were concerned about the health and wellbeing of men, women and children during the coronavirus crisis.

“Humanity is presently facing a potential global calamity, and as a responsible company, we saw an opportunity to help people in vulnerable households to improve their hygiene and arrest the spread of the virus.”

She said Tongaat Hulett was committed to working closely with the KZN Department of Health in promoting safe and healthy communities particularly in rural areas.

Over the years, the company has partnered with the Department to promote the “HIV and Me” programme which supported 5 000 learners in 10 schools, within the Ilembe district municipality, who were infected or affected by HIV and AIDS.

The Department has willingly agreed to use their facilities as distribution points for the hand sanitiser kits and packs of instant porridge.

André Redinger, founder of the Southern Lodestar Foundation, said the closure of schools and the current lockdown posed a massive problem for children who depended on the daily meal they received at school.

“Our mission is to alleviate hunger in vulnerable children by providing feeding and nutrition education programmes to allow these children to thrive at school, and to inspire them to strive for personal and community development.

“Nutrition is the cornerstone of a healthy life. Nourishment is key for any child to grow mentally and physically. Therefore, we decided to donate 2 000 units of instant porridge containing wholegrain maize which is high in energy, fibre, protein and vitamins. These will be distributed through the identified health centres,” he said.

“As the Department of Health in KwaZulu-Natal, we welcome the donation from Tongaat Hulett and Southern Lodestar Foundation. It will go a long way in limiting the spread of the Corona virus and in helping vulnerable children access nourishment, said Dr Sandile Tshabalala, Head of Department”. We are also encouraging other stakeholders in the province to join hands with the Department in making our communities safe and healthy. Companies and stakeholders that are keen in contributing are welcome to contact the office of the HOD in the province.

SCAM ALERT

Tongaat Hulett is committed to fair and equitable procurement processes and is committed to the elimination of all forms of fraud, collusion and other unethical behaviour that undermine procurement governance.

It has come to our attention that certain businesses have been contacted and requested credit by persons posing as Tongaat Hulett employees, utilising fraudulent Tongaat Hulett Director ID’s and fake Tongaat Hulett CK Documents in their credit application. We wish to notify potential suppliers that all such credit applications coming via email from entities posing as Tongaat Hulett is in fact fraudulent. Valid and bona fide credit applications will only always arise as a consequence of a Tongaat Hulett tender process or engagement and the authenticity can be verified by contacting 032 439 4464 or enquiries.procurement@tongaat.com.

Please be aware that if your business receives such a request from us via mail or is contacted telephonically please send an email to info@tongaat.com or enquiries.procurement@tongaat.com. Also any form of communication from us via email will only be sent from a “@tongaat.com” email address.

In addition, we encourage you to report fraudulent activity anonymously on our 365/24/7 Free Call Tip-offs Anonymous service – 0800 21 21 87 or tongaat@tip-offs.com.