Case studies: Southern Africa

A change for the AngloGold Ashanti Corporate Social Investment Fund

The year under review signalled a significant change in the way in which AngloGold Ashanti handles its corporate social investment (CSI) activities in southern Africa. Until the end of 2006 the group’s CSI vehicle in southern Africa, then the AngloGold Ashanti Fund and Trust, was managed by a specialist corporate donor support agency, Tshikululu Social Investments. In 2007 the management of these functions reverted to the group with the vehicle becoming known as the AngloGold Ashanti CSI Fund.

These developments served to focus attention on the way in which corporate social investment is dealt with throughout the group and the outcome has been the reviewing of the company’s CSI strategy and the implementation of a more structured and considered approach. The strategy outlines the company’s recent move towards taking a more proactive approach to identifying projects in which it can be involved.

The company’s South African CSI initiative is directed by the AngloGold Ashanti CSI Committee, the members of which are drawn from executives and senior management in different fields.

Administration of the CSI Fund, including the evaluation of proposals, is handled by the Corporate Affairs Department at corporate office.

During 2007 the CSI Fund contributed R14,1 million to 61 projects across southern Africa. The trend of the past few years has been to focus attention on regions in which AngloGold Ashanti has operations and the areas from which the company draws large numbers of employees. This strengthened further in 2007 with 95% of the projects supported being situated in these areas. North West Province, where the West Wits and Vaal River operations are located, benefited from 40% of the available funding. Next in terms of expenditure, at 14%, was the south-eastern part of the Eastern Cape (formerly known as Transkei) where the families of the majority of employees from this province reside. The other important labour-sending areas are the province of KwaZulu-Natal and the neighbouring countries of Lesotho and Mozambique.

Looked at in terms of sectors, education received the greatest backing (45%) followed by HIV/AIDS (22%), welfare and development (12%), and skills training and job creation (13%).

In line with AngloGold Ashanti’s determination to make a difference in the communities in which it operates, in 2000 the group established local area committees in the West Wits and Vaal River regions. These committees consider requests from local organisations. If the projects are relatively small in scale, evaluations are made at this level. Bigger projects are referred to the CSI Fund.

As a way of giving employees the opportunity to become more involved and to strengthen community ties, each business unit is encouraged to embark on its own fund-raising initiatives in support of local projects. Amounts raised are matched by the CSI Fund, capped at R100,000 per business unit.