In an initiative that seeks to support vulnerable learners across South Africa by providing them with new pairs of school shoes, iron-ore miner Kumba Iron Ore partnered with State-owned logistics company Transnet earlier in the year on the latter’s Shoes on Feet campaign.

Since inception in October 2024, the campaign has collected over 5 000 pairs of shoes, with Kumba’s contribution accounting for 1 000 pairs.

The lack of shoes for school children is a serious problem with far-reaching implications as it may exacerbate absenteeism, heighten stigma and exclusion, and perpetuate social inequity, states Transnet group CE advocate Michelle Phillips.

The shoes will be distributed to various schools in Kumba’s host communities in the John Taolo Gaetsewe and Tsantsabane municipalities, in the Northern Cape, as well as Saldanha Bay municipality, in the Western Cape.

“Transnet’s Shoes on Feet campaign aligns well with the company’s Anglo American Purpose of re-imagining mining to improve people’s lives and its values of care and respect,” says Kumba CEO Nompumelelo Zikalala.

As an organisation, she says Kumba views access to education as vital in addressing challenges such as poverty and unemployment.

“Education is one of the enablers of Kumba’s Sustainable Mining Plan, which focuses on thriving communities as one of its pillars,” states Zikalala.

“This year, we wanted to expand the impact of the Shoes on Feet campaign and approached a number of partners . . . Kumba heeded the call, contributing significantly to the success of this campaign,” says Phillips.

Transnet’s community development agenda, she adds, is underpinned by a commitment to bring about sustained and meaningful change by addressing social challenges in impoverished communities.

Speaking at the Shoes on Feet handover ceremony in Postmasburg, Tsantsabane local municipality Mayor Helena English thanked Kumba and Transnet for their donations.

“We really appreciate your efforts. I am very happy about this initiative. Let’s change our children’s lives together. Let’s build future leaders together,” she said.

Empowering Host Communities

In addition to the Shoes on Feet campaign, Kumba also provided 100 unemployed youths with security training.

As one of the fastest developing sectors in South Africa, Kumba acknowledges the growth of the security industry’s important position in business, government and the community.

Accounting for more than 500 000 members, the security industry is one of the largest entry-level employers in the country, providing a stable source of income for many households, Kumba notes in a statement.

The security training was undertaken in partnership with Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority-accredited small to medium-sized enterprise Microchip Security, which facilitated the training over a period of three months.

The training equipped the participants with Grade EDC training, which covers topics such as risk identification, patrol procedures and access control.

Upon completion of the security training programme, Kumba Northern Cape hub corporate affairs manager Adriaana Slambert handed over certificates and encouraged the participants to “seize the opportunity to change their lives”.

“The continuous growth of the private security industry in the country demonstrates that there’s a need for this type of work in the job market. Through this initiative, we’ve equipped you with the necessary skill and knowledge to tap into this sector,” she said.

The security training programme, added Slambert, demonstrates Kumba’s approach to livelihoods which seeks to ensure that residents in host communities have access to employment opportunities that will allow them to improve their standard of living.

As a part of the initiative, Microchip Security will employ some of the trained participants, while the rest are registered on the Passport 360 recruitment platform that Kumba and its partners use to match candidates with potential employment opportunities.