Social Investment
Zurich South Africa supports projects and initiatives that underpin our commitment to the communities within which we operate. Across our core business practices, our propositions and services and in our engagement with our local communities we proactively consider and address social, environmental and governance issues that are of concern to our stakeholders. Being a responsible sustainable company is therefore essential to how we do business.
Our aspiration ‘to be the leading empowered insurer in our chosen markets’ not only permeates our core business operation, but also reflects our commitment to contribute to the sustainable development of African society.
Our BEE status
We take our BEE commitments extremely seriously and in 2010 we were ranked as a Level 4 contributor with maximum rating for our social economic development, enterprise development and ownership pillars. We have in place a robust transformation agenda that will take us towards our aspiration of becoming a Level 1 contributor over the next three years.
Our community investment
We continually review and seek to improve our substantial contribution to social welfare. Some examples of the initiatives we supported in 2010 are reflected below.
We continued to provide funding and hands-on support and participation in MaAfrika Tikkun’s community project which operates in Diepsloot, north of Johannesburg. This non-governmental organisation was founded in 1994 soon after South Africa’s first democratic elections and focuses on uplifting previously disadvantaged communities with an emphasis on the support of orphans, vulnerable children and their families.
Alongside this programme, we supported a number of Royal Bafokeng social programmes including a mobile library, the Tapologo Hospice and Phokeng Trauma Centre for victims of crime and sexual abuse.
Given the low literacy rates in these particular regions, it is hoped that the mobile library will help to instil the culture of reading in primary school learners. 39 schools benefit from the library, with the measurable deliverables being an improved quality of teaching in Maths and Science, an increased pass rate in Maths and Science at Grade 9 and 12 levels, and improved reading and writing skills amongst primary school learners.
The Tapologo Hospice aims to assist families and communities to care for people affected and infected by HIV/Aids. In 2010, the organisation provided support to 425 orphans and vulnerable children and the Hospice admitted 338 people. The services provided include psychological support, assistance with accessing basic services and material resources and assistance with establishing income- generating projects. Through this project, we seek to ensure that each child is provided with a meal every day, as well as life skills and educational material, assistance with homework and psychological support.
The Phokeng Trauma Centre endeavours to provide a one-stop rape and trauma support centre for victims and survivors of crime and sexual assault. Trauma counselling, psycho-education, court preparation services, material assistance and medication are provided to approximately 50 people per month.
Another key area we support is the Royal Bafokeng Nation’s youth development programme. Sport is a key element in the Royal Bafokeng’s master plan for socioeconomic development and, as a result, Royal Bafokeng Sports (RBS) started operating in January 2007 as a subsidiary of Royal Bafokeng Holdings, with the prime mandate to generate financial and social returns from the development of the Royal Bafokeng Nation’s sporting assets.
Continuing our support of tertiary institutions, we once again provided financial assistance to three universities - University of Cape Town, University of KwaZulu-Natal and University of the Witwatersrand - operating in the major centres where we have a presence. These universities, who have been supported for many years, channel the funds to their bursary department in support of previously disadvantaged students.
Our propositions and services
We are committed to leveraging our global network of experts to ensure we develop products and propositions that are accessible to the breadth of the African population. In particular, we have commenced a number of initiatives in 2010 targeting lower income families, starting with the provision of funeral insurance for these individuals before seeking to develop further affordable products offerings in 2011.
Our environment
We continue to commit to environmental and conservation activities and in particular, our sponsorship of the Endangered Wildlife Trust’s Birds of Prey Working Group has now been ongoing for around 17 years.
In total, Zurich South Africa contributed over R7.8 million in 2010 towards community investment and environmental projects and, going into 2011 we are looking to develop and refine our programme of activity further.
Our strong partnership with Royal Bafokeng Holdings has created opportunities to identify proactively areas that require development with respect to education standards, ensuring that we can tailor literacy and maths programmes that will make a sustainable and positive difference to communities. In addition, our association with MaAfrika Tikkun is aligned perfectly, enabling us to develop individuals within families, and families within communities.
By creating focus and channelling both money and time into a number of core initiatives, Zurich South Africa can tangibly demonstrate that as an organisation we are genuinely embracing the spirit of socio-economic development - not just paying lip service - by having a clear vision to make a tangible, positive difference.
