At a handover ceremony held at the Brixton Church on Monday, 28 September 2020, Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa (CCBSA) donated gadgets, personal protective equipment (PPE) and other vital essentials to inner city-based waste reclaimers.
In an investment amounting to R232 000, CCBSA sponsored four Samsung Galaxy A30s phones and four Lenovo Core i5 Processor laptops, which will be used by the African Reclaimers Organisation (ARO), a Johannesburg-based non-profit association of informal waste reclaimers who collect recyclables. Fabric cloth masks, grocery vouchers and care kits, which include sanitiser liquid and other essentials, were provided directly to ARO member waste pickers.
“Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown, we focused our efforts on providing much-needed support for communities most affected by the outbreak,” said CCBSA Public Affairs, Communication and Sustainability Director, Nozicelo Ngcobo. “We had a special focus on waste reclaimers, as they form a critical part of our efforts to help recover product packaging from the environment.”
Waste reclaimers, who earn a livelihood from the complex and have the arduous task of managing recyclable waste, are especially at risk of infection, but have limited access to sanitisers and other protective equipment to keep them safe.
As an integral part of the country’s recycling value chain, they were amongst the worst affected during the State mandated lockdowns and needed help to keep going while they waited to return to work.
“In working with our partners, we are dedicating focused time and energy into providing as much meaningful support as we can,” Ngcobo says. “As one of the largest producers of beverage packaging in the economy, it is our responsibility to ensure the proper implementation of Covid-19 safety guidelines across our ecosystem by providing the essentials where required.”
During the course of the pandemic, CCBSA provided further community support across the country, including food, blanket, face mask and PPE donations to vulnerable communities in Gauteng, Free State, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal and the North West Province.
In addition to the waste reclaimers, a total of 4050 households were supported across these areas in an investment of over R865 000.
“While waste reclaimers received a special focus in the bulk of our efforts, we identified the areas of greatest need in four of the most vulnerable regions across South Africa,” Ngcobo said. “To limit infection, we recognised that we have to support everyone in the community to enhance health, hygiene and economic upliftment as we all return to our lives.”
About CCBSA
Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa (CCBSA) is a proudly South African company which began operating as a legal entity in July 2016, after the merger of six non-alcoholic ready to drink bottling operations. We employ over 7000 people at 13 manufacturing facilities across the country.
As a subsidiary of Coca-Cola Beverages Africa (CCBA) and a bottler for The Coca-Cola Company, our vision is to refresh Africa every day and make our continent a better place for all. We manufacture and distribute Coca-Cola beverages that make life’s everyday moments more enjoyable, while doing business the right way. The result is shared opportunity for our customers, our employees, our communities, and our shareholders.
We conduct our business ethically, transparently and conscientiously. We espouse an inclusive business culture to reflect our African identity. We accelerate sustainable, profitable revenue growth across all categories and offer an innovative portfolio of products that respond to customer needs and consumer preferences. Profitability is important, but not at any cost. People matter. Our planet matters. We do business the right way by following our values and partnering for solutions that benefit us all.
