Kaya FM, Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa (CCBSA), Meals on Wheels and Shoes4Souls are partnering once again for a worthy cause, the annual #Back2School Campaign. Each year, they visit different disadvantaged schools in the Gauteng province. This year, the event will take place at the Ditawana Primary School in Orlando East, Soweto, on Friday the 11th of February from 9 am.
A total of One hundred and sixty (160) needy learners from grades one to three will receive a new pair of school shoes, stationery and a meal donated through this partnership.
CCBSA is passionate about creating shared value through the many initiatives implemented in their host communities. Georgett Naidoo – CSI Specialist at CCBSA, said that “we are responsive towards initiatives like the #Back2School campaign to help balance the scales and play a role in securing their economic inclusion and a better future.
CCBSA also creates a social impact for the youth in our country through sustainable programmes such as the Study Buddy Fund launched in 2021 to offer financial relief to at least seventy matric students from across the country and a bursary scheme in the host communities where they have committed over four million rands in financial aid to tertiary students who come from disadvantaged backgrounds.
“As a business, we cannot ignore the state of education in South Africa, the extreme challenges the system has faced and how the Covid -19 pandemic has impacted it over the last two years and to recover, we need all hands-on deck. We all know that the growth of any country is linked to its young people having access to good education, and we appreciate that the work of dealing with challenges in our education system cannot rest on government alone. Hence the establishment of our CCBSA Study Buddy Fund to help aspiring students, to give them hope and help them realise their future aspirations,” says Nozicelo Ngcobo – CCBSA Public Affairs, Communications and Sustainability Director.
Naidoo concluded by sharing that, “since the launch of the scholarship fund, CCBSA in the Gauteng region has supported thirty-six students from Eldorado Park, Freedom Park and Tembisa communities and will increase this number in 2022 as they conclude agreements between universities and CCBSA.
Study Buddy Fund
The Study Buddy Fund’s mission is to make sure the seventy top deserving students have everything they need for a new start and a chance at a successful academic life.
“We hope that our “holistic offering” will be the ultimate Study Buddy for our students, accompanying them on their academic journey, providing them with much-needed support and helping to keep them motivated along the way. Tertiary education can be overwhelming and daunting for some, having someone who can help you from a touch of a button will make the transition a little easier”, concludes Nozicelo Ngcobo – CCBSA Public Affairs, Comms & Sustainability Director.
Five students will be selected from the following fourteen communities, making it a total of seventy (70) Study Buddy Fund recipients. The host communities include Tembisa, Freedom Park, Motsoaledi, Tswelopele, Elrichpark, Kensington, Korsten, (Ntuzuma, Inanda, Kwamashu), Alexandra, Duduza, Ratanda, Seshego, Grabouw & Eldorado.
