MTN SA announced today that in celebration of the company’s 30th anniversary, they are hosting a special edition of its long-standing, 21 Days of Y’ello Care initiative, tagged 30 Days of Y’ello Care, which involves staff from across the country– a milestone that will be commemorated by leveraging technology to bridge the education divide.
Under the theme, “Learn Today, Lead Tomorrow: Education for Rural and Remote Communities”, the campaign involves MTN employees across SA in local initiatives to give back to the communities they serve. Every June since 2007, MTN’s people have dedicated their skills and the company’s resources to focus on critical societal needs.
“In South Africa, our focus for the entire month will reinforce our unwavering commitment to promoting access to education in underprivileged and remote areas. In these areas, which are often marginalised, communities generally have little to no access to quality education and tech facilities,” says Charles Molapisi, MTN SA’s Chief Executive Officer.
“To bring the advantages of our expertise to as many communities as possible this year, we have launched an innovative MTN mobile tech library – our ‘Y’ello Bus’. This unique ‘tech library on wheels’ will enable multiple communities in Gauteng, North West, Limpopo, the Free State and Mpumalanga to gain an understanding of the importance and benefits of technology on education,” he said.
Besides providing learners access to digital resources, the event is timed to allow participants to use online educational resources when preparing for their upcoming exams. Learners in their final years of schooling will benefit from gathering information on tertiary educational institutions and careers, and for other grades they will be exposed to importance of STEM subjects and awareness of future career pathing available through career guidance.
“At the MTN SA Foundation, we’re committed to enabling education, especially in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) areas, and our ‘Y’ello Bus’ is geared towards just that. Over three decades, we’ve equipped schools and community centres with multi-media facilities, promoted computer literacy and provided learners with options to broaden their prospects through learning coding skills and robotics. It’s a legacy that extends beyond our network capabilities, and we’re proud to be able to uplift communities through our Y’ello Care campaign each year,” said Marina Madale, MTN SA’s Acting Chief Sustainability and Corporate Affairs Officer.
Like all focused MTN educational programmes, the 2024 ‘30 Days of Y’ello Care’ campaign is a commitment to levelling the academic playing field by ensuring that children in rural and remote areas have access to the same quality education as their peers in urban centres.
“We recognise that education is the cornerstone of a thriving society. We have for 30 years used our resources and access to the best of today’s available technologies to build a better-resourced educational tomorrow,” she said.
“As it has in the past, the ‘Y’ello Care’ campaign led by the mobile tech library, and complemented by staff initiatives in other areas, reinforces our commitment to bridging the digital and educational divide that impacts the futures of many of our people. Through concerted action, we are determined to reduce the deficits created by inequality and accessibility in South Africa and wherever we operate to make progress real for all South Africans,” concludes Madale.
For further information on ‘30 Days of Y’ello Care’ follow MTN on social media at @MTNza.
