Monthly Archives: June 2010
Sensible CSI spend across SA’s provinces
25 June 2010
Written by Paul Pereira, Tshikululu Social Investments Executive: Public Affairs.
There are no sensible ways in which corporate social investment (CSI) practitioners should try to equalise their spending across provinces. And it isn’t their job to try to.
This is partly because the mandates of state spending and that of CSI differ markedly, both as a function of where their respective moneys come from, and because of their differing scales of expenditure.
FirstRand Foundation wins top CSI award
23 June 2010
The FirstRand Foundation was presented with the Best Corporate Citizenship/ Social Responsibility award at the 2010 African Business Awards, held last night in London.
The prize recognises exceptional leadership in tackling social and environmental challenges, and corporate social investment efforts that benefit both employees and local communities directly, as well as leveraging new approaches by government and the private sector. Criteria include replicability, sustainability of impact and use of the skills and core competences of the company.
The African Business Awards brings together business leaders and companies who are making a significant contribution to Africa’s business climate and economic development. Their achievements continue to change the perception of Africa’s potential in domestic and international markets. They are creating new economic opportunities for citizens and communities all over the continent and inspiring the new generation of entrepreneurs who will shape the future of Africa’s 54 countries.
The objective of the African Business Awards is to highlight this successful and confident Africa which is largely open to local, regional and global business ventures.
The FirstRand Foundation is managed by Tshikululu Social Investments.
" alt="Confronting South Africa's water challenge" />Confronting South Africa’s water challenge
21 June 2010
South Africa can implement a balanced solution for closing its water demand–supply gap by seizing an array of cost-effective measures available across supply, agricultural efficiency and productivity improvements, and industrial and domestic levers.
South Africa faces a growing gap between water supply and demand. The most effective solutions will cater to the specific agricultural, industrial, and domestic needs of the country’s different basins. The abridged article below, from McKinsey Quarterly, is adapted from the full report Charting our water future.
Water resource management looms as one of the greatest global challenges of the 21st century. Around the world, businesses, governments, and policy makers alike must work together to move beyond business as usual not only to increase the supply and improve the productivity of current resources but also to reduce withdrawals by reshaping underlying economic activities. In South Africa, the challenge is complex: a semiarid country characterized by low rainfall, limited underground aquifers, and a reliance on significant water transfers from neighboring nations, South Africa will face difficult economic and social choices between the demands of agriculture, key industrial activities such as mining and power generation, and large and growing urban centers. However, a recent report by the 2030 Water Resources Group, for which McKinsey provided analytical support, finds that solutions are possible and need not be prohibitively expensive if they are addressed now.
Huge drop in HIV infections
New HIV infections in South Africa dropped by 35% between 2002 and 2008, a study reveals.
These results – obtained from analysing three national HIV household surveys conducted in South Africa in 2002, 2005 and 2008 – confirm the initial findings of the 2008 survey: SA National HIV Prevalence, Incidence, Behaviour and Communications Survey: A Turning Tide Among Teenagers?
They provide the first scientific proof that HIV prevention campaigns in South Africa, promoting condom use and HIV testing, are making a dent in the high rate of new infections.
Read more about the huge drop in HIV infections at Times Live.
Tshikululu Social Investments releases 2009 Report to Society
15 June 2010
We are pleased to announce the release of Tshikululu Social Investments’ 2009 Report to Society, available on our website for download in PDF format here. The Report speaks to our specific role at Tshikululu.
Tshikululu’s Nada Mxube talks CSI
Tshikululu Social Investments’ CSI practitioner Nada Mxube talked about CSI and the role of corporates in social development on Stevie B’s show on Kaya FM on 2 June 2010.
Listen to her interview here.
" alt="Field Band Foundation plays at World Cup 2010 closing ceremony" />Field Band Foundation plays at World Cup 2010 closing ceremony
The Field Band Foundation (FBF) is delighted to be given the honour of playing a part in the 2010 FIFA World Cup celebrations
The Field Band Foundation (FBF) is delighted to be given the honour of playing a part in the 2010 FIFA World Cup closing ceremony celebrations, the format of which is shrouded in secrecy.
Says FBF CEO Retha Cilliers, “The association with the 2010 FIFA World Cup will undoubtedly boost the confidence of the young men and women involved in the Foundation, becoming an experience and memory never to be forgotten.”
“Being given the opportunity to be part of an event that means so much to the country acts as a personal reflection of the remarkable progression achieved by each student involved in the FBF.”
NGO heroes of the World Cup
14 June 2010
Deepa Patel reports on how some NGOs are beefing up their work to deal with the uglier side of the football extravaganza. Patel is a CSI practitioner at Tshikululu Social Investments.
The Romans knew that if you couldn’t give people bread, then you could try get away with circuses. But let’s not be churlish – the football extravaganza unfolding in South Africa is a welcome distraction, and a healthy opportunity for the country to unite. It’s also just plain fun.
Some NGOs have to look at the other side of this fun – the particular challenges that arise during such tournaments with their influx of assorted people, and especially the potential for an increase in the abuse of women and children. Here is what some of the quiet heroes of the soccer world cup will be doing:
PROTEC Pietermaritburg Academy launches new website
11 June 2010
After weeks of careful selection of content and hard work, PROTEC Pietermaritzburg Academy are extremely proud of their brand new website. Importantly, the site will enable the Academy to remain in touch with their post-students with the use of a simple online information page which is automatically emailed through to the Academy.
PROTEC Pietermaritzburg Academy was founded in 1989 as an extra lesson initiative. Visit their website here.
De Beers English Olympiad top 15 winners announced
2 June 2010
The Grahamstown Foundation and the South African Council for English Education (SACEE) have released the names of the Top 15 De Beers English Olympiad winners in alphabetical order. The winners will be announced in their rank order at an official prize-giving ceremony in Grahamstown on 9 July 2010. The rank order of the Top 100 winners of the De Beers English Olympiad will be available on 9 July on the Arts Education Project website.
On 2 March this year, 6 314 entrants from Grades 10 to 12, from throughout the country and some neighbouring states, wrote a three-hour examination. The theme of the examination this year was “œCharacter: Analysis and Motivation” and the anthology, entitled “œUnder their skin and in their shoes”. The anthology was compiled by the South African Council of English Education.
