THE Vodacom Foundation handed over 300 stationery packs to learners at Moime Primary School in Tzaneen as part of its national stationery drive last Thursday.
Each stationery pack comprised of a pencil case, pencils, a sharpener, an eraser, ball point pens and a ruler. A scientific calculator will also be included in the pack for high school learners.
According to Vodacom’s head of corporate communications, Suraya Hamdulay, the donation was aimed at ensuring learners had access to basic educational tools to kick off the new school year.
The chairperson of the Vodacom Foundation, Maya Makanjee said the key objective of the stationery drive was to support the department of basic education in its mandate by providing support to disadvantaged schools in the country.
“Our goal is to ensure learners throughout the country have access to some basic tools to start off the new school year,” said Makanjee.
Makanjee said Vodacom employees across the country have volunteered their time to distribute the stationery packs to 210 schools nationwide.
“To Vodacom, thank you so much for showing you care for the learners. Thank you for connecting children to the world through a lifeline of education. The private sector plays a critical role in the provision of much-needed resources. The stationery packs that you have so generously given to the learners will certainly help them. With limited resources, government cannot do it alone. Education is a societal issue and we thank Vodacom for the contribution,” said the deputy minister of basic education, Enver Surty.
According to Makanjee, other Vodacom Foundation social investment programmes in the area of education included the information and communication technology schools connectivity project, which was aimed at improving the quality of teaching and learning in schools across the country, the Vodacom Bursary Scheme which supported learners by providing bursaries in the science and technology fields, the Vodacom Millionaires programme which donated four computer centres to public schools in the country and support to the department of basic education in its food security programme.
