ACTSA; Beshlie goes to Africa.: 13: Big Business doing its bit?

So what's it all about then?

Visit my justgiving page to donate and take part in the £1 challenge.

Well hello there. My name is Beshlie and I work for the Marine Management Organisation as a Marine Officer. I joined Prospect, the recognised trade union for marine officers, and soon became involved in union matters, including the young professionals network. I took on the role of environment rep and international development advocate because it is a subject I feel strongly about and thought it would be an opportunity to influence decisions affecting all MMO staff and have a positive influence outside the organisation. I have been working with management, fellow reps and Prospect officers on creating MMO’s sustainable development action plan, which ties in with the bargaining for international development project; the environment and people are very much linked in my mind. As a consequence, I applied for a two week trip to South Africa with ACTSA, an organisation described as the successor to the anti-apartheid organisation. Guess what.... I'm going and this blog will tell you about it. Eventually!

Monday, 6 September 2010

13: Big Business doing its bit?

Okay, so today we spent the day with Coca Cola. Before you start screaming in horror at the fact, hear me out. Although Coca Cola have a somewhat shady reputation globally, in Africa they appear to be doing their bit.

The Coca Cola Africa Foundation.

Established by the Company in 2001, The Coca-Cola Africa Foundation (TCCAF) is the entity that coordinates our corporate social investment programs and implements community initiatives in Africa . The Replenish Africa Initiative (RAIN) is the Foundation's flagship water program and is the umbrella under which all future water programs will fall. Launched in 2009, RAIN is a public-private partnership made possible through a six-year, $30 million commitment from The Coca-Cola Company. The initiative will provide sustainable, clean water sources, hygiene education and sanitation services to millions of people throughout Africa.

The Foundation also supports many other community initiatives throughout Africa, including HIV/AIDS & malaria prevention, access to education, job creation and humanitarian assistance.

Diepsloot; the township where we were today.

The outreach H.I.V and S.T.I education program at work.

This morning, we spent with a Coca Cola funded project called the Olive Leaf Foundation, with some inspirational people who are working in their community in Deipsloot. The OLF receives funding from several organisations, including Coca Cola. Diepsloot is a township to the North West of Jo'berg; the population is indeterminate due to the rapidly expanding squatter camps on the outskirts, but a conservative estimate would be 300,000 people. OLF currently have five projects underway;

1) The provision of basic education on H.I.V and sexually transmitted infections.

2) Volunteering for testing

3) Orphaned and vulnerable children

4) Granny Project

5) Gender based violence.

Today, we got involved with the project on H.I.V and S.T.I's. When I say involved, I mean that the OLF were happy to take us out in their community and engage with people in order to educate them about the dangers of unprotected sex. Basically, the main educator had a book with very graphic images of what can happen to you and did impromptu talks to anyone who would listen. It was truly fabulous to be a part of it, standing in a Shebeen, watching the mainly male audience recoil in horror at what could happen. After the talk ended, the audience were invited to a workshop at their local centre, which would aim to discuss and educate the community on attitudes towards sex. The transmission of H.I.V in the region is a very real concern and education is an absolute must if the situation is ever going to change. The workshop was well attended and was set to be very interesting. Sadly due to time constraints we had to leave before it had finished, but it was nonetheless fascinating and is an undoubtedly valuable service in the community.

In the afternoon, we went to the Coca Cola bottling plant, where we heard all sorts of useful facts, but unfortunately there was not anyone there who could answer the ethical and environmental questions posed. I did find out though, that in Africa, Coca Cola fund a project called RAIN - Replenish Africa Initiative. The RAIN project is funded with $30 million of Coca Cola's money. It has the goal of providing at least two million people in Africa with access to clean water, launch over 100 water programs including healthy watershed, sanitation and hygiene programs, contribute to sustainability of water resources across Africa and provide people with sanitation and hygiene education by 2015.

Another thing Coke are doing is sponsoring the international coastal cleanup (woooooo). Here's the spiel:

In 2008, Coca-Cola launched a multi-year partnership with Ocean Conservancy through a $1 million pledge to support the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC). The Ocean Conservancy is a non-profit, environmental advocacy organization that promotes healthy ocean ecosystems and opposes practices that threaten ocean life. The organization began in 1986, and Coca-Cola has supported global Cleanup efforts for 15 years.

This is the 25th anniversary of the International Coastal Cleanup, which is the world's largest single-day volunteer effort to eradicate litter and debris from the world's beaches, inland waterways and oceans. In addition to debris removal, the Cleanup includes a data collection effort by which volunteers record the specific types of debris recovered, providing insight into marine pollution. The data is compiled and analyzed, and a report is published the following spring.

Last year alone, nearly 42,000 Coca-Cola system associates, their friends and families in 32 markets around the world participated, contributing nearly 265,000 hours of volunteer time. And, the entire Cleanup effort resulted in all most 500,000 volunteers in 108 countries collecting more than 7.4 million pounds of trash.

I've signed up to take part....... perhaps some of my friends and colleagues will too........?

We have all heard the stories about Coke in Columbia and India, but I reckon that in Africa, they are doing a little bit of good. I don't know about the damage they do here.

No comments:

Secondary Links

The Nomntu Project

The Nomutu project is run by a friend of mine's family. It provides educational, social and practical support to those suffering from poverty, abuse, HIV/AIDS in small communities in the Eastern Cape. They do good work. Support them if you can!

Artists For a New South Africa

Artists for a New South Africa (ANSA) is a nonprofit organisation working in the U.S. and South Africa to combat HIV/AIDS, assist children orphaned by the disease, advance human and civil rights, educate and empower youth, and build bonds between our nations through arts, culture, and our shared pursuit of social justice.

Music you might like

Johnny Clegg: Johnny Clegg is one of South Africa’s most celebrated sons. He is a singer, a songwriter, a dancer, anthropologist and a musical activist whose infectious crossover music, a vibrant blend of Western pop and African Zulu rhythms, has exploded onto the international scene and broken through all the barriers in his own country.

Listen on Myspace here.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo: So good were they that after a time they were forbidden to enter the competitions but welcomed, of course, to entertain at them.

Listen on Myspace here. (Yes, they are the ones from Paul simon's Graceland album).

Putumayo world Music - South Africa. Listen to previews through Real/Media Player. These guys are great, as they support NGO's and non profit organisations. For info click here.

Soul Brothers; Initially formed in KwaZulu Natal, the group have remained the slickest and most successful proponents of the mbaqanga sound which dominated South African urban music for over three decades.

Listen on We7 here.

Xavier Rudd and Izintaba: Album Koonyun Sun. Xavier is from australia, Izintaba from South Africa. I won't give you a review, just get it. It's ace. Particularly track 4.

Listen on Myspace here.

South Africa Fact File

For more information click here.

South Africa, officially called the Republic of South Africa, is the southernmost country of continental Africa, bordered in the north-west by Namibia; in the north by Botswana and Zimbabwe; in the north-east by Mozambique and Swaziland; in the east and south by the Indian Ocean; and in the west by the Atlantic Ocean. The independent country of Lesotho forms an enclave in the eastern part of the country. South Africa has an area of 1,219,090 sq km (470,693 sq mi). The administrative capital of South Africa is Pretoria, the legislative capital is Cape Town, and the judicial capital is Bloemfontein.

Government

In February 1990 South Africa’s white minority government lifted the ban on anti-apartheid political organizations and freed African National Congress (ANC) leader Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners. The government and the black liberation movement, led primarily by the ANC, then entered into negotiations to dismantle apartheid and open the way to political democracy in South Africa.

Religion, Language and Culture

Religion

About 68 per cent of the people of South Africa are Christians, mainly Protestant. Most Afrikaners belong to the Dutch Reformed Church, and most South African whites who speak English as their first language belong to the Anglican, Congregational, Methodist, or Roman Catholic Churches. Blacks are also members of these denominations; in addition, many of them adhere to so-called independent Churches, which combine elements of Christianity and traditional African religions. A significant minority of blacks also follow traditional beliefs. Of the non-Christian religions in South Africa Hindus comprise 1.3 per cent and Muslims 1.1 per cent. South Africa also has a Jewish community of some 67,600 people, although a number of Jews have emigrated to Israel in the past 25 years.

Language

There are 11 official languages in South Africa: Afrikaans (6.2 million), English (3.5 million), Ndebele (588,000), Northern Sotho (3,840,000), Southern Sotho (2,704,000), Swati (1,019,000), Tsonga (1,646,000), Tswana (2,822,000), Venda (666,000), Xhosa (6,858,000), and Zulu (10,700,000). Afrikaans and English are the languages of record. The former, a variant of the Dutch language, is the first language of almost all Afrikaners and many Coloured people. English is used as the primary language by many whites and is also spoken by many Asians and blacks. To most blacks, however, a Bantu language (see Niger-Congo Languages) or Khoisan (Click) language is their first language. In addition to English, many Asians also speak a language of India. Fanagolo, a Zulu-based pidgin, is spoken by several thousand mainly as a lingua franca among mining communities. A group of Afrikaner intellectuals, concerned that Afrikaans is being marginalized in South Africa, met at Hammanskraal in May 2000, to launch the Group of 63, which seeks special constitutional protection for Afrikaans and other minority languages. Members include the South African writer Breyten Breytenbach. It is the first time since early last century that Afrikaners from such a diverse political spectrum have united on a cultural project.

Culture

The historical segregation of racial and ethnic groups in South Africa has resulted in distinct cultural developments. Within the white population English and European cultures have re-emerged as dominant influences, especially with the erosion of the Afrikaner-created apartheid system, and the end of the international isolation it caused. The historical distinction between the more religious and nationalistic Afrikaners and the more cosmopolitan English speakers is diminishing, especially among young people.

Among blacks, urban and rural cultures continue to differ. Urban black culture is multi-ethnic and increasingly draws on international influences, such as those of African-Americans. These influences have increased since the end of international sanctions against South Africa, which restricted artists from other countries from performing in South Africa. In the major urban areas the end of apartheid has brought about more interracial cultural activities. Generational differences within both the white and black populations also play a role in cultural expressions. In rural areas black cultural activities tend to emphasize the traditions of particular ethnic groups. Traditional Afrikaner culture is also strongest in rural areas. In recent years a new sense of self-pride has developed in the Coloured community and has found expression in writing, theatre, and music.

In 1993 the two sides agreed to hold the first multiracial elections in South Africa’s history in April 1994. A Transitional Executive Council was formed to supervise the elections, which would put in place new national and provincial governments. After difficult negotiations amid rising violence, much of it politically linked, an interim constitution was approved to serve as the country’s law until a permanent one could be written and adopted by the new parliament. The negotiators agreed that the new government would be one of “national unity”, in which minority parties with at least 5 per cent of the vote would be represented. However, the minority parties would not be able to exercise veto power over the decisions of the majority governing party.

ACTSA; Beshlie goes to Africa.

Contributors

So what's it all about then?

Monday, 6 September 2010

13: Big Business doing its bit?

No comments:

Post a Comment

Followers