18 July 2019 – Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa (CCBSA) honoured the legacy of former President Nelson Mandela by opening Ligbron E-learning (LES) centres at the Thuto Mfundo Secondary School and Retshedisitswe Secondary School in Villiers. The company has already opened eight such centres in the Eastern Cape and Polokwane, representing an investment of over R4 million
The great Nelson Mandela famously said that ‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world’, and that’s something CCBSA has really taken to heart,” says Tsholofelo Mqhayi, Head of Enterprise and Community Development. “For us, this is not about standalone projects on Mandela Day, but a sustained and integrated effort to make a real difference in educational outcomes in this country in an effort to provide our people with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in life. Our goal is to add a further eight schools by 2021,” said Mqhayi
The LES classroom technology system was developed by the Ligbron Academy of Technology in 2008. LES provides the integrated technology platform to allow rural and underperforming urban schools to connect to educational resources using interactive whiteboards and audio or video streaming, via the Internet either through fixed lines or mobile networks. In this way, teachers can source top-quality educational material for classes, and for extra study.
LES also opens up opportunities for teachers to enhance their skills with specialised training and development.
“LES offers a highly effective way for teachers even in the remotest areas to access the training they need to empower themselves,” says Ms Mqhayi
Alongside the opening of the two latest LES centres, CCBSA had a range of events planned to mark this important day. The company also partnered with FoodForward and Pick’n Pay—employees who spent 67 minutes to help pack food packages for the less fortunate.
In addition, CCBSA employees will be spending time during July on various volunteering projects to help with infrastructure development, refurbishments, creating a veggie gardens, assisting the feeding scheme with cooking equipment, uniform sewing equipment and cleaning. Examples include building a new kitchen at Thandani Drop In Centre in Pretoria to a high enough standard for the institution to qualify for funding, and developing and refurbishing infrastructure at Landulwazi Edu Care Centre Youth Centre in Sideview, Grabouw.
“We are convinced that while Mandela Day is obviously an important time for the nation to come together, we should treat it as the starting point for a continuing journey to turn his vision to a reality,” Ms Mqhayi concludes.
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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.
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