East London – Rural schools in South Africa’s poorest province, the Eastern Cape, will once again benefit from the Rally to Read project in 2011. Host, Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA), joins hands with national organisers McCarthy, Financial Mail, the READ Educational Trust as well as local corporate sponsors to deliver educational material to identified schools over the weekend of 28 May 2011.
Research shows that the average 16-year-old in a rural school has a reading skill level up to seven years behind that of his urban counterpart. Without effective reading and writing skills, the likelihood of completing high school or tertiary education and the prospect of future work is limited.
The Rally to Read concept began as a small project in Kwa Zulu Natal in 1998, and over the past 13 years has escalated to include eight provinces. MBSA marks a milestone decade of involvement in the project in 2011. The company, which has its manufacturing plant in East London in the Eastern Cape, spends 45% of its annual social investment budget on community development projects in this province.
“Because MBSA draws its workforce largely from the Eastern Cape, the standard of learners exiting the education system in this province is of great interest to us. We continue to do everything in our power to join hands with other interested parties in delivering a well-educated and skilled labour force which is relevant to the needs of industry,” says divisional manager for group corporate affairs, Nobuzwe Mangcu.
Additionally, the Mercedes-Benz group of companies in South Africa, through its financial services and fleet management arms, has also been involved in Rallies in other provinces for the past five years. In 2011 their support will go to the Limpopo, Kwa Zulu Natal and Mpumalanga provinces.
The weekend-long Rally in each province sees teams of employees from sponsoring corporates take to the road in 4×4 vehicles to deliver books, teaching aids, science kits, sports equipment, educational toys and other materials to some of the most neglected and under-developed schools in rural South Africa.
The sustainable nature of the project is a major draw card for MBSA to continue its involvement. “MBSA sees its corporate social investment portfolio as a strategic investment into the future, not only of the company in South Africa, but also of the people of the country,” Mangcu says. “As such our focus is on the long term impact that we are able to make on the individual, but also on development of communities as a whole.”
Each school and region of a province is supported over a three year period, so sponsors are able to return in subsequent years to experience the impact made on the lives of the beneficiaries. In addition to the educational material supplied, the project also provides ongoing professional support to educators at the schools over the three years through the Read Educational Trust.
