The Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber will host Dr Imtiaz Sooliman founder of the Gift of the Givers on 19 July, at the Athenaeum in Central, where he will deliver a talk on the Power of Humanity and the Effect it has on Business.
The Gift of the Givers Foundation is the largest disaster response non-governmental organisation of African origin on the African continent. Its work entails disaster management, hunger alleviation, provision of water, promotion of human development, creating a conducive environment for education and contributing to the healthcare of communities. The essence of its presence is to bring hope and restore dignity to the most vulnerable across the globe.
The purpose of the event is to highlight the importance of businesses not only focusing their community support initiatives for 67 minutes on Mandela Day but to operate humanely throughout the year and to shift away from complaining to taking positive actions which positively impact upon impoverished communities.
Last year, as part of efforts to mitigate against the risk of the water crisis on communities, the Chamber and its members worked alongside Gift of the Givers to implement a number of interventions. “We believe that these efforts helped stabilise the situation and also resulted in the various stakeholders rallying together to help communities to get access to water. These joint actions highlighted just what can be achieved if we all work together to support the common good,” says Chamber CEO Denise van Huyssteen.
“We are very pleased that Dr Sooliman accepted our invitation to come to Nelson Mandela Bay and to hone in on the important role humanity should play in our businesses. This is especially relevant when one considers the multiple crisis issues, which businesses are now facing on a daily basis, particularly in terms of electricity, water, sanitation and other infrastructure challenges. These require innovative solutions and quick action, all of which are key attributes which Gift of the Givers have become known for.”
She said that the Chamber has embraced a constructive and solutions orientated mindset of collaborating with whoever will do the right thing and this has led to the roll-out of a number of interventions. Among others, these include Adopt A School, Adopt A Sub-Station, Adopt A Leak, the 24 hour stage 5+ loadshedding schedule, the establishment of a renewable energy cluster and six geographic clusters located in the main industrial and business areas across Nelson Mandela Bay. Additionally a very positive development has been the signing of a Master MOU between the Municipality and the Chamber, which enables them to work together – particularly around infrastructure related issues.
Van Huyssteen said that instead of becoming overwhelmed by the scale of challenges, now more than ever before, we all need one another and need to work together. “All stakeholders matter and have a role to play, no matter how small or big. And it has been heartening to see this spirit emerging in Nelson Mandela Bay.”
Alan Straton
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