Impala Rustenburg has officially handed over nine Social and Labour Plan (SLP) projects to the local community. Along with community leaders and representatives of the Royal Bafokeng Nation family and the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy Impala celebrated the handover of the completed projects, which are valued at over R94 million and created an additional 714 jobs in the area.
Recognising the value of Impala’s contribution to the local community, Kgosi Leruo Molotlegi of the Royal Bafokeng Nation, said, “On behalf of the Nation, we wish to thank Implats for its contribution towards our long-term vision for sports, community and youth development. A partner like Impala allows us to create facilities such as the Kanana multi-Sport Centre which gives us a strategic advantage highlighted in our sports vision for not only sports development and creating the athletes of the future but they also contribute to the sports economy and local enterprises through potential eventing and hosting of youth and elite sports, arts and cultural events.”
Continuously proving Impala’s desire to go above and beyond what is required, the company’s investment into formal youth training, a bursary programme, learnerships, a cadet programme, SMME development and job creation is designed for long term impact. The deep involvement of Impala in the Rustenburg communities has also extended to assist inCovid-19 awareness,donations of PPE and ventilators, first aid kits, food parcels, and partnerships with taxi associations to assist in keeping the community safe.
The SLP projects involved community leaders and representatives very early in the planning phases and covered a wide range of development initiatives, including school facilities, roads, a water scheme, and community facilities, in four communities where the need was the greatest.
Cllr Mpho Khunou, Executive Mayor of the Rustenburg Local Municipality, said at the handing over ceremony, “As a municipality, we are extremely proud of these projects and we are confident they will continue to make an impact and leave a legacy. They are giving youngsters hope for the future that they would not otherwise have had. We are also proud of what Impala has done during the difficult period of Covid. Last year we reached out to Impala to help us deal with the challenges we were experiencing. Amongst many other initiatives, they adopted some of the schools to help matriculants recover lost time, and if you look at the results of those schools you can see the impact. We are proud as a municipality to have a corporate citizen such as Impala, and this handover is an important example of what we can achieve if we all work together as the community of Rustenburg.”
Mark Munroe, Chief Executive of Impala Rustenburg, says, “Contributing to the upliftment of our communities is crucial to us. We’re an integrated part of the local community and if our community is struggling, our business in turn will struggle.”
The SLP projects that Impala Rustenburg has completed formed part of their 1st and 2nd generation SLP undertaking and include:
Ramotse Community Centre in Luka
This project included the renovation of Ramotse Community Centre including roofing, tiling, painting, rewiring, plumbing work, and garden improvement, as well as the construction of a new workshop.
Luka, Makgotla Offices
15 fully furnished Makgotla Offices were constructed, with a gathering area for about 120 people, offices, ablution facilities, paved walkways, parking area, and garden renovation.
Luka, Roads and Storm Water Channel
Internal roads were constructed from gravel to paved roads with parallel water channels.
Luka, Water Scheme upgrade
A dedicated water pipeline was installed from ground level in Luka into an area in Mogono. A pumping station was constructed to transfer water at a high rate from the storage into the elevated steel tank to supply the area.
Luka, Mogono Hall renovations
The hall had been vandalised and posed a safety risk to the community. The project included painting, roof sealing, electrification, plumbing and landscaping.
Kanana, Roads and Storm Water Channel
Roads and storm water channels that link to existing systems were constructed.
Kanana, new Multipurpose Centre
The centre provides access to public facilities, and consists of a multipurpose indoor sport facility which doubles as a hall, and comprises a library, offices, ablution facilities, a kitchen, and paved parking facilities. The transformer and sewer plant were also upgraded to accommodate the new building and nearby schools.
Kutlwanong, Road upgrade
The main road leading to Kutlwanong School for the Deaf was a dirt road, and the school requested Impala to upgrade this road to a paved road.
Lefaragatlhe, Sports facility
Multi courts for netball and basketball were constructed and fenced off.
Munroe concludes, “We are honoured to be an integrated part of the community and many of these facilities and infrastructure upgrades are already in use by the people of our communities. We are proud to officially hand over these projects today, and we hope to see the residents of the various communities benefiting from them for many years to come.”
Image supplied by Photo Corner
