TONGAAT HULETT CELEBRATES WORLD RED CROSS DAY

Through a partnership with the Red Cross Society, Tongaat Hulett has invested R375 000 towards the establishment of two food security initiatives in KwaZulu-Natal. The objective of the initiative is to ensure that communities and the volunteers build internal systems that would cushion them against any form of risk or environmental shocks including COVID-19.

The first food security project is based at Macekane at Empangeni. The company in partnership with the Red Cross will assist with the provision of the much need equipment for the project. The second project is based at Obanjeni and it has been established mainly by the Red Cross volunteers. This project has been allocated R252 000 which will be utilised towards the initiation of the project.

The COVID-19 pandemic remains a health and humanitarian crisis that has threatened the food security of many households in the communities where the company operates. People in the majority of the impoverished communities that were already experiencing food insecurity and hunger are now at a breaking point. To provide short-term relief, on World Red Cross Day, volunteers prepared lunch for the Shewula residents in Tongaat, who did not know where their next meal would come from. Nazoke Solutions donated all the food suppliers. Approximately 100 people including children and adults were fed by the volunteers.

The Red Cross volunteers have played an invaluable role since South Africa first went on lockdown in March 2020. The volunteers have ensured that indigent households were identified in the various municipalities and coordinated intervention efforts between government, communities and private sector organisations. They also ensured that there was no duplication of effort.

 

 

To commemorate World Red Cross Day on Saturday 8 May 2021, Tongaat Hulett also partnered with the KZN Red Cross Society to support two indigent households in the Magwaveni area of Tongaat.

The first household had three  family members including an elderly woman who was the head of the household and supporting the family using her state pension. The second household had  nine family members including an elderly woman who was also the head of the household and supporting the family. Both the Red Cross Society members and Tongaat Hulett representatives donated non-perishable food items to the two families.

Through Tongaat Hulett’s partnership with the Red Cross, a total of 3 000 food parcels, to the value of R1.3 million, were distributed in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and Cape Town in 2020. During the distribution of the food parcels, the Red Cross representatives facilitated engagements between the community leadership, Tongaat Hulett and government. These engagements assisted with the identification of the most vulnerable households in the targeted provinces and communities. The Red Cross management also ensured that sufficient volunteers were deployed to support Tongaat Hulett during the distribution days.

The partnership between Tongaat Hulett and the Red Cross is based on mutually aligned goals. The Red Cross’ main goal is to create an enabling environment where all people are treated with hospitality, dignity and humanity.

“Tongaat Hulett socio-economic development (SED) programme’s goal is to improve people’s social and economic wellbeing. This means facilitating the strategic distribution of resources to promote human dignity and improved quality of life,” said Nkonzo Mhlongo, Tongaat Hulett Sugar SA’s Corporate Affairs Executive.

“Our mission as the South African Red Cross Society is to render services to prevent and alleviate human suffering and to foster human dignity in all communities by addressing people’s basic needs in accordance with the fundamental principles of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent Movement,” said Mrs Twala from the KZN Red Cross office.

It is no wonder that these 2 organisations continuously partner on various initiatives designed to promote meaningful development and improved livelihoods for the indigent individuals and communities.

The first Red Cross Day was celebrated on 8 May 1948. This date was chosen in honour of the founder of the movement Henry Dunant who was born on 8 May 1828. The official title of the day has changed overtime and became World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day in 1984. It is estimated that one in 636 people in the world are Red Cross Volunteers.

TONGAAT HULETT FACILITATING THE PROVISION OF TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES

Last year, a total of 67 youngsters and community members in KwaZulu-Natal are fulfilling their dreams of becoming qualified artisans and agriculturalists. Tongaat Hulett secured R3.9 million to assist these community members and youngsters in the areas where the company operates to fulfil their dreams of becoming qualified artisans and agriculturalists in the various sugarcane projects implemented in the various communal areas.

The students have been accepted to undertake training in a number of areas, including welding, fitting and turning electrical and instrumentation. They were selected from the traditional leadership areas of Macambini, Nzuza, Mpungose and Khoza under the Mandeni and uMlalazi local municipalities.

Tongaat Hulett Sugar South Africa Corporate Affairs Executive Nkonzo Mhlongo said skills are central to improving employability and livelihoods opportunities, enhance productivity and promote local economic development in the communities associated with Tongaat Hulett.

“Coordinated efforts with multiple stakeholders, including the sugarcane farmer organisations, are critical to increasing people’s access to relevant, good quality education and training, particularly in rural communities. The multiple stakeholder forums also provide high level leadership to ensure that the benefits of development are extended to all,” she said.

During the recruitment drive, Tongaat Hulett adopted a hands-on approach. Mhlongo said the process started with the distribution of the application forms to the various grower structures within the Tongaat Hulett catchment areas.

“A total of 104 application forms were received from the grower leadership. This process was then to shortlist qualifying candidates. The shortlisted candidates had to have Grade 12 with strong math and science results, an N3 qualification as a minimum and some workplace exposure.

“The training of the thirteen trade students will cost R2.6 million. The course also has a workplace component integrated into the training programme. Tongaat Hulett in partnership with the Shukela Training Centre have committed to support the students with their workplace training in order to ensure that they complete the programme,” said Mhlongo

Fikile Cele (27), a student, said that this year had been a very challenging year for her and her family.

“I have been busy applying for learnerships but with no luck. In order to support my family, I have been making beads and selling them to the community members. I am so thankful to be part of the electrical apprenticeship training programme which is a nine week course. An amount of R106 000 has been invested towards my tuition over the next 3 years to make my dream of becoming a qualified electrician a reality.  This investment will change the trajectory of my life and my family,” said Cele

Cyprian Khumalo (44) is another student who has been awarded R85 000 over the next 3 years under the fitting and turning programme.

“I have been unemployed for 4 years. The training facilitated by Tongaat Hulett will give me broad range of career options in the future. It will also take away the stress factors that have been associated with my financial insecurity. There are twelve of us at the Centre and from day one I felt a sense of excitement and commitment from each student.

“We really appreciate Tongaat Hulett’s commitment to creating value for all its stakeholders including the ordinary community members,” said Khumalo.

PROFILE: BUDDING ICT ENTREPRENEUR NJABULO MAPHUMULO

Njabulo Maphumulo is a budding entrepreneur who has worked hard to expand his Information and Communications Technology (ICT) business with the support of Tongaat Hulett.

Maphumulo said Tongaat Hulett’s assistance since 2018 has been invaluable as it enabled the business to grow its capacity.  “The main reason I sought assistance from the start was to get access to fibre internet as I knew it would enable the business to provide faster internet access,” said Maphumulo.

Tongaat Hulett also provided non-financial support by giving Maphumulo’s business access to one of the towers which connects his antennas in the Tongaat area to the fibre source in Ballito. 

Since receiving financial assistance from Tongaat, the business has been able to sustain and add new customers.  Maphumulo’s customers include those looking for fast and affordable internet access through a broadband service delivered wirelessly to the end users. Before getting financial assistance, the business experienced a lot of customer churn due to service degradation whenever demand increased. 

“Over the past 6 months, I have installed 12 new antennas in Tongaat and surrounding areas. My customers feed off these antennas. I am now able to provide faster internet. In the next 3 – 5 years Maphumulo aims to increase the number of active users on the network.

As part of company’s strategy, the infrastructure growth has been kept at a minimal level to ensure that service quality does not degrade due to insufficient network capacity.

Maphumulo said that the business had focused strongly on providing service quality.  “This has meant that we can retain existing customers.  The current and future plan is to reinvest revenue back into the business by purchasing new hardware and establish new sites in other areas.  One of the challenges to scaling up is getting access to additional high and secure sites for mounting equipment but I have a plan for how this can be best achieved.” 

Maphumulo has been working with local spaza shops as distribution channels for the data bundles.  He does not have a fixed number of customers since the service is prepaid and not contract based. 

“During school holidays, through the assistance of PROTEC, I was placed in an electronics repair shop which was in line with my love for technology says Maphumulo”. PROTEC is a national non-profit organisation that runs excellence programme for learners from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds that have aptitude in maths and science.  The Tongaat branch is providing support to 91 students from Hambanathi, Magwaveni and Tongaat Central in KwaZulu-Natal.

PROTEC is now one of Maphumulo’ clients.  With the financial support received from Tongaat Hulett, network hardware was purchased and installed at PROTEC and an uncapped internet is now provided to the NPO.

Maphumulo was born in KwaZulu-Natal and lived a nomadic life for the better part of his childhood where he stayed with his relatives Flagstaff & Bizana in the Eastern Cape.  Maphumulo moved to Tongaat in 2001 when he entered Grade 9 in Buffelsdale high school.   It was also in Buffelsdale where Maphumulo got his first exposure to ICT. “I learnt about computers and I was also exposed to computer programming,” he said.

After completing his grade 12 in 2004 Maphumulo wanted to register for hardware engineering but could not do so due to financial constraints. In 2006, Maphumulo was accepted at the Durban University of Technology and studied architecture up to third year.  He did not complete his Diploma, again due to financial challenges which meant that Maphumulo needed to consider a different approach. He started doing research on a business that he could establish and went back to his first love of ICT. In 2017, established his company, Borderless Investment Group.

While Maphumulo has not yet achieved all his dreams, he is taking all the necessary steps to do so.  His advice to upcoming entrepreneurs is to have a vision and action it every day, no matter how long it takes.

R6-MILLION DISTRIBUTED TO BENEFICIARIES FOLLOWING TONGAAT HULETT AND UBIZO CPA AGREEMENT

 

A total of 194 households in Ubizo, near Richards Bay, have benefitted to the tune of R6-million following an agreement signed  two years ago between Tongaat Hulett and the Ubizo Communal Property Association (CPA) aimed at social upliftment and improving livelihoods.

The Ubizo CPA acquired more than 2 500ha of land as a result of a land claim lodged in 1995, of which about 1 700 is under sugar cane. In 2018, the CPA signed a lease agreement with Tongaat to accelerate sugarcane development, build skills and provide contracting opportunities for qualifying service providers.

The partnership is part of a joint effort between the Regional Land Claims Commission, community leadership and Tongaat Hulett to help drive land reform in the province. The Ubizo CPA has 194 households who are part of the register of beneficiaries.

Tongaat Hulett Corporate Affairs Executive Nkonzo Mhlongo said land reform is one of the major drivers in advancing the empowerment of historically disadvantaged communities in South Africa. 

“Well managed land reform projects create value for the poor, balances relationships between private sector organisations such as Tongaat Hulett and communities, and promote sustainable rural development. They also provide enterprising individuals within the community with an opportunity to plug themselves into various business opportunities that emanate from the land reform process,” Mhlongo.

Ubizo CPA chairperson Thomas Cebekhulu said the Ubizo CPA recognized the role of restitution in promoting social upliftment and improving livelihoods, particularly in rural communities. 

“All our efforts as the CPA executive committee, as instructed by the beneficiaries, have been to ensure that we promote good governance, and continuous beneficiary engagements.  During our term of office, which began in 2015, there have been major achievements that have resulted from our healthy working relationships with Tongaat Hulett.

“The most exciting has been realised with the distribution of  R6 million in dividends to the 194 households, with each household receiving R30 927,84. This is a clear indication that the CPA Committee has delivered on its mandate of ensuring beneficiation,” said Cebekhulu.

Other achievements included the construction of the CPA Office named after community ancestor Inkosi Mzimba. The partnership with Tongaat Hulett would also soon result in the establishment of a satellite area for a mobile clinic, with the building supported in terms of the Socio-economic Development Programme. The clinic was likely to be ready for service delivery next year.  

Cebekhulu said there had been hard times when the beneficiaries had questioned the business model the CPA had adopted with Tongaat Hulett.

“This distribution process is a clear statement to the beneficiaries and other land restitution communities that the restitution process has the ability to yield economic benefits for the community,” he said.

Land Claims Commission Regional head, Advocate Bheki Mbili, said that the Commission was very pleased with the progressive development within the Ubizo community.

“What excites us is not only the payment of dividends to the beneficiaries of this claim, but we are also encouraged by the exemplary manner in which this community has looked after the land that was restored to them.

“Had they not done so, the payment of dividends would have remained an elusive dream for members of this community. We are also encouraged by the level of stability that exists within the community which augurs well for the economic spinoffs that come with future land restoration to be realised,” he said.

Mbili said the Ubizo CPA and Inkosi Cebekhulu were a good example that it was possible to effectively manage the relationship between ubukhosi and CPAs.

“We wish to congratulate the leadership of Ubizo community for stepping up to the proverbial plate in order to ensure that members of this community realise the benefits of restitution whilst at the same time protecting the asset that will ensure continued benefits to generations to come,” said Mbili.

 

Background

A land claim for the Ubizo community with 194 households was lodged by Inkosi Nsikayezwe Russel Cebekhulu on behalf of the community with the Regional Land Claims Commission in 1995.  The first phase of the Ubizo claim was approved by the South African government in 2015. This approval resulted in the acquisition of land for the Ubizo community totaling 2 547 hectares.

The total area under sugarcane is 1 749 hectares.  The farm has a maximum production capacity of 100 000 tons.  A total of 318 community members are employed in various roles in the farm. The second phase of the Ubizo claim was finalized in 2019/20. The second phase resulted in additional hectares being transferred

In 2018, the CPA signed a lease agreement with Tongaat Hulett.  The agreement contained several objectives including accelerating sugarcane development in the lease area; supporting and implementing education, capacity building and training programme for the community; providing contracting opportunities for qualifying service providers; and fostering socio-economic development. 

Tongaat, in partnership with the CPA, has ensured that the various sugarcane development activities were being implemented in the different sections of the farm.  The parties have ensured that appropriate individuals were identified to be capacitated over a period of time into the role of a farm manager.  The training and capacity building process is still ongoing. 

In addition, a total of seven youngsters from the Ubizo community have been supported to attend the Junior Certificate Course in Sugarcane Agriculture.  This is a 3-week course which seeks to introduce students to the sugarcane agriculture business.  The key focus areas of the course include botany, environmental management, farm management, farm planning, mechanization, irrigation, soil and nutrition and pest and diseases. 

The CPA is currently working with the Department of Health and all relevant stakeholders to establish a satellite area for the mobile clinic.  The intention is to build a structure that would operate as a waiting area for the community members.  This structure will promote human dignity and provide privacy for the community.

TONGAAT HULETT DOES NOT OFFER JOBS IN EXCHANGE FOR MONEY

We follow sound and fair recruitment processes, and any offer of employment would never be contingent on a candidate making any form of payment.

Please be aware that if you are approached and offered a position in exchange for money, this is fraudulent. We encourage you to report it anonymously on our 365/24/7 FreeCall Tip-offs Anonymous service – 0800 21 21 87 or tongaat@tip-offs.com.

If you would like to work at Tongaat Hulett, our career vacancies are advertised on the following website portals:

• Careers24
• PNet

BANKING DETAILS SCAM ALERT

The pandemic and introduction of lockdowns globally saw a surge of cybercrime, and there has been a noticeable increase in incidents in Southern Africa. Please remain extremely vigilant to unusual emails to ensure that  you are protected.

One recent method adopted by fraudsters is to pose as a company representative and request a customer to change the company’s bank details. These requests are often accompanied by a fair amount of knowledge of the amounts owed, when payment is due, purchase order numbers, valid ID numbers etc. These requests are almost certainly accompanied by a forged letter from the “bank” confirming the details. All of these are specifically intended to make the request appear genuine.

We have been made aware of fraudsters attempting to contact our customers using a similar tactic. Please note that our banking details have not changed, and should you receive such a request, please do not action it.

Should you receive a request to change banking details please notify us on Tongaat@tip-offs.com

PROFILING PHUMZILE NTULI – INTERNATIONAL DAY OF RURAL WOMEN

Rural women play a central role in supporting their households by generating income, ensuring there is food on the table for their families and improving the overall well-being of their communities.  They create and contribute to agriculture and rural enterprises and participate in a wide range of grassroots activities.  They also tend to spend far more time than urban women and men in agricultural activities ranging from establishing home food gardens to their participation in agricultural cooperatives. 

Mrs Phumzile Ntuli is based at Izindophi Reserve under the Mpungose Tribal Council and is one of the many rural women committed to extending the benefits of development to all the people in her community.  Izindophi is also one of the sugarcane growing communities that works in partnership with Tongaat Hulett. Ntuli grew up like all other young girls in the area.  She attended Khayalodumo primary school and Zwelithini high school in the area.  

Ntuli says: “Izindophi, like many rural communities, has always been negatively affected by high levels of unemployment, poverty, alcohol and drug abuse. I felt compelled to do something in order to change the circumstances of my community.”

In 2005, she founded Qalekhaya Primary Cooperative with four other community members.  The primary objective of the Cooperative was to create employment for the youth and women in and around Izindophi.  Ntuli says she had seen that most of the women in rural communities were involved in raising chickens and felt something different was needed.

“During our assessment of the local environment, we saw and heard through media that learning in certain schools was being impacted by a lack of school infrastructure.  This is how the idea of establishing a Cooperative to manufacture school furniture was born,” she says. 

The Cooperative manufactures school furniture for the majority of schools throughout KwaZulu-Natal. The Cooperative has grown to an extent that it now has 13 permanent employees and 7 temporary employees. Most of the employees are local youth who are now able to support themselves and their families.  The Cooperative continues to grow, and it is currently generating R1.5 million in revenue annually. 

Ntuli says: “As a Cooperative we noticed that the business of providing school furniture was seasonal.  However, we also saw that the demand for food was constant.  This was how the idea for the establishment of a food garden initiative was born.  The food garden initiative has enabled food insecure households to grow food and feed themselves. The highlight of this project is that it is not only feeding vulnerable households, it has grown to a point where the project selling its produce to the local businesses in and around Eshowe including the local Spar.” 

The lockdown period has been when the Cooperative has been at its busiest – the demand for food was at its highest when most family members were at home. “Local businesses and communities wanted our produce and we had to ensure that we opened more areas in order to plant the various food crops,” she says.

While Ntuli has continued to succeed against the odds, the Cooperative still struggles to access infrastructure.  Due to the lack of agricultural equipment, the Cooperative spends a lot of its financial resources hiring tractors from local farmers.  Going forward, they would like to own their own tractor so that they can plant more area and also generate an income through assisting local farmers in the area.

In addition, during the lockdown period, 20 volunteers from Shining Star Community Development, a Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) that was formed by the Cooperative, worked with government to raise awareness about COVID-19.  The NPO is also assisting socially vulnerable children by buying them school uniforms and supporting the local youth to participate in sports and recreation by encouraging sports in the community. 

Nkonzo Mhlongo, Tongaat Hulett Sugar Corporate Affairs Executive, says the empowerment of rural women continues to be a major focus of Tongaat Hulett’s sustainable rural development approach. 

“Tongaat has invested resources in building the capacity of women in agricultural cooperatives and has implemented socio-economic development initiatives aimed at improving the social wellbeing of rural children, youth and communities. Our interventions have also stimulated local economies through the sugarcane development initiatives in and around the areas where the company operates,” she says. 

TONGAAT PARTNERS WITH ETHEKWINI MUNICIPALITY TO COMMEMORATE WORLD FOOD DAY

Tongaat Hulett and the eThekwini Municipality have formed a partnership to donate food hampers to child headed households in and around the Tongaat area in commemoration of World Food Day 2020.

As many countries and communities around the world struggle to deal with the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the organisers of World Food Day launched a call for all social partners and governments to support the most vulnerable communities and make the food systems more sustainable.

In response to this call, eThekwini Municipality and Tongaat Hulett took a decision to partner and focus their support on mainly child headed households.

Nkonzo Mhlongo, Corporate Affairs Executive of Tongaat Hulett Sugar, said the company was committed to creating value for all its stakeholders.

“Our decision to partner with eThekwini Municipality was to ensure there was no duplication of effort and that our interventions targeted the poorest of the poor. This partnership will enable Tongaat Hulett to respond effectively to the significant social challenges in the eThekwini area.

“It has also enabled us to create awareness programmes and support initiatives centered around the prevention of an outbreak of COVID-19 in the local communities and our employees,” she said

A hands-on approach was adopted during the identification of the child headed households and other vulnerable community members, with community-based development workers being central to this process. The majority of the selected children and youth were from challenging environments and had limited access to adequate sanitation and water. Many of the children and youth were dependent on the State grant as well as money sent by their family members or relatives working outside their communities.

Commemorating World Food Day, Sam Maphumulo, Regional Coordinator, Community Participation and Action Support Unit of eThekwini Municipality, said that in the second quarter in South Africa, a total of 2.2 million lost their jobs. “COVID-19 has imposed a huge burden on communities, particularly child headed households and low-income families, making them vulnerable to household food insecurity.

“World Food Day has given the Municipality the opportunity to partner with companies such as Tongaat Hulett in order to support vulnerable children and households,” he said

One of the beneficiaries of the food hampers was a youngster named Sipho (not his real name). He is the eldest child and is responsible for five children ranging from the ages of 15 to the age of 4 years. In 2018, his life changed forever when his mother passed away after a short illness.

Sipho said: “While my extended family is around, they also have their own struggles. They are all unemployed and certainly could not afford an additional six mouths to feed. I therefore took the decision to leave school in Grade 10 to support my siblings, which I do through fishing and piecemeal jobs. The support from Tongaat Hulett and eThekwini Municipality will take away the stress of wondering where our next meal is going to come from.”

Tongaat Hulett also partnered with the National Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries on World Food Day. The company donated 300, 2.5kg bags of sugar which will be included as part of the food parcel to be distributed by the Minister of Agriculture, Thoko Didiza. The Department is a strategic partner of Tongaat Hulett on issues relating to sustainable agriculture, farmer development and sustainability, and the social and economic wellbeing of rural communities in the areas where the company operates.

 

SADC PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN TONGAAT HULETT AND SOUTHERN LODESTAR FOUNDATION

The Southern Lodestar Foundation has donated 60 tons of instant porridge to support vulnerable children in Zimbabwe, Mozambique and eSwatini.

At the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, Tongaat Hulett partnered with the Southern Lodestar Foundation to donate high energy porridge to communities associated with Tongaat Hulett in South Africa and other countries. Research shows that with improved nutrition, children are able to develop mentally and physically, which boosts their ability to learn and absorb new information. 

Andre Redinger from the Foundation says that Tongaat Hulett in South Africa and the Foundation started working more closely together in early April as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in order to further their reach.

“Our commitment to Tongaat Hulett is to extend beyond this period to ensure we deliver a sustainable breakfast programme in the countries we are operating in. We have benefitted from Tongaat’s significant support – from logistics; to human resources; to reaching those who need nutritional intervention as a matter of life and death.

“To many of the children in Africa, we pledge nourishment, education, and love so that we can help to uplift; to inspire and to be of service.”

Tongaat Hulett’s mission is to build its future by creating sustainable value for all its stakeholders by investing in those communities within which the company operates.  Tongaat supports a wide range of sustainable development initiatives aimed at improving the wellbeing of communities and families. The company uses its existing infrastructure, logistic network and stakeholder relationships to accelerate the distribution of the instant porridge in the three countries.  

Nkonzo Mhlongo, Corporate Affairs at Tongaat Hulett Sugar, says that the partnership between the company and the Foundation has highlighted the importance of collaboration.

“The donation has enabled both parties to share their specific competencies and capabilities to help achieve a common goal of improved nutrition in the three countries. The donated 60 tons will translate into 1,2 million meals and will therefore go a long way in supporting individuals and families that are at a breaking point.”

Sonia Matsinhe, Covid-19 Team Leader for Tongaat Hulett Mozambique says that Tongaat Hulett’s partnership with the Southern Lodestar Foundation presented a perfect opportunity for the company to intensify its corporate social responsibility interventions related to nutrition and food security. 

“This donation has ensured that children, senior citizens and recovering Covid-19 patients benefit from a nutritious and high energy meal in the morning.  The porridge has been allocated to the local hospitals of Xinavane, Magude, Manhiça, Moamba, Mafambisse, Dondo and Nhamatanda, local schools, student homes, nursing homes/old age homes, orphanages, vulnerable families in the surrounding communities, and employees affected by the pandemic. 

“As Tongaat Hulett-Mozambique we are also arming our employees with information and the tools that they need to operate safely,” says Matsinhe.

Gugu Mthimkhulu, head of Human Resources in Tongaat Hulett eSwatini, says that Tongaat Hulett has taken extraordinary steps to promote safe and healthy communities in the areas where the company operates. 

“The company has procured masks for its employees, provided sanitizers and put measures in place to minimise social contact. Through the partnership with the Southern Lodestar Foundation, we have also been able to assist children access the high energy instant porridge in the morning.  This assistance will contribute to increased school attendance and improved learning amongst children. 

“In addition to that, destitute elderly people from the nearby surrounding communities have been supported. The porridge was distributed to the following feeding kitchens/care points Vuvulane Farm, Mafucula, Maphiveni, Shewula, and Lomahasha communities,” says Mthimkhulu.

Adelaide Chikunguru Corporate Affairs and Communication Executive in Tongaat Hulett-Zimbabwe, says that Tongaat Hulett Zimbabwe has made use of the company resources and the existing network of partners to have a meaningful response to the COVID-19 crisis.  

“Through the partnership with the Southern Lodestar Foundation, we will be able to make 400 000 meals available to children and individuals that have experienced undue hardship because of the pandemic.

“By supporting these communities and individuals, Tongaat Hulett is not only addressing the challenge of food insecurity and malnutrition, but also helping to ensure the sustainability of local institutions amid such a crisis.  The instant porridge will be distributed to 39 primary schools and 4 hospitals in Chiredzi. 

TONGAAT WELCOMES DECISION ON STARCH SALE

Tongaat Hulett has welcomed the decision by independent third-party Rothschild & Co that a material adverse change (MAC) has not occurred with relation to the R5.35 billion sale of its starch business to Barloworld.

Tongaat CEO Gavin Hudson said was pleased that the decision by the independent expert had confirmed Tongaat’s belief that a MAC event had not occurred, and that the transaction would now go ahead.

“Throughout this process we have continued to work to close out workstreams to meet our other obligations under the agreement reached with Barloworld in February this year, so that we can conclude the sale and move forward. It is expected that we will be able to finalise this process by the end of October with the Starch business transferring to Barloworld from 1 November 2020.

“Starch is a great business and Barloworld is fortunate to be buying such a valuable asset with excellent people. However, the rationale for the sale remains unchanged – it will help us to continue meeting our debt reduction targets. Tongaat is a high potential business with a significant asset base, and this decision will ensure that our focus remains on bedding down the turnaround of our organisation,” he said.

Hudson said Tongaat would work with Barloworld in a collaborative manner to close the starch transaction as soon as possible now that the issue of the MAC dispute was behind the two companies.

“The sale of starch will position the group for longer-term sustainability as we deliver on our strategic business partnerships that will step-change our transformation initiatives, protect employee jobs and help support the economies of the countries in which we operate,” he said.