Shoprite's Mandela Day activities are an extension of the company's ongoing work to bring positive socio-economic change in communities that it serves. Nelson Mandela himself said: "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead."
Over the last few days, hundreds of staff members from the group's head office in Cape Town and its seven divisional offices in other main centres of South Africa started work on 17 major projects. This year the group aims to alleviate hunger in the poorest of communities by supporting sustainable projects that provide meals for those in need beyond Mandela Day. Some of the activities include: planting vegetable gardens, aiding community feeding schemes and schools offering pupils meals, food security and hygiene training, the renovating of soup kitchens, purchasing of new cooking equipment, construction of sheds for feeding schemes that offer shelter from hot summer and rainy winter days.
Furthermore, smaller initiatives from more than 320 stores nationwide are focusing on local projects within their own communities that aim to contribute in a positive way to the lives of the elderly, abused and destitute women and children, disabled adults and children, and those who find themselves unemployed and homeless.
The group also partnered Stop Hunger Now, an international organisation that coordinates the distribution of food and other life-saving aid worldwide. Shoprite staff volunteered with enthusiasm as they tag teamed to pack 36,228 meals over two days at head office. The meals will be donated to five ECD (Early Childhood Development) programmes in Crossroads, Cape Town, to feed 250 children for 12 months.
Caring for the communities it operates in has always been a priority for the Shoprite Group. The group appreciates the loyal support from the community and is continuously looking for ways in which to give something back to its customers. In the footsteps of Mandela it encourages all individuals to "Take Action! Inspire Change", it only takes 67 minutes to make a difference.
