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With Early Childhood Development remaining an essential part of the educational system in South Africa, Builders together with MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet assist Zilungisele Primary School through their strategic partnership.
Situated in the Ilembe Municipality in Kwa-Zulu Natal, Zilungisele Primary School was built in 1920 by parents from the community, and over 50% of its current learners are either orphaned or from child-headed households. Most parents earn a marginal income with few local work opportunities. Teaching grade R to 9 to a co-ed student body of 689 learners, the primary school faced challenges in infrastructural needs, specifically a lack of space for Grade R students.
“We were starting to have some spacing issues which was going to lead to us prioritising certain grades over others. But with the help from Builders and MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet, this will no longer be the issue” informs Mrs Shabalala, principal at Zilungisele Primary School, moreover the school was selected based on its urgent needs related to space as well as its impact as a proven community role model. The joint efforts will help to build 2 x Grade R classrooms, storage space, and a veranda to accommodate 66 Grade R students. Thanks to the new classrooms the Grade R learners (aged 5-6 years) will have dedicated classroom space, improved child-to-teacher ratios and classroom space will be freed up for other grades.
Making a difference and building better lives is a priority for Builders. As a result, every time a customer swipes their Builders Card, Builders pays R2 to MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet at no extra expense to the customer. Customers are also encouraged to direct contributions to a school or cause close to their hearts by linking their MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet profile to their Builders card, and the R2 will then be paid to the cause of their choice, thus contributing towards uplifting communities that are important to them.
Between October and December 2020, just over R392 000 was paid by Builders to MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet which enabled these two new Grade R classrooms at the school
MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet has been around for 23 years and is a multi-partner community programme that enables people to give back to schools and causes of their choice in a sustainable way by simply swiping their cards at their various retail partners MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet seeks to make a difference through direct investments into education, youth development, animal, and environmental protection.
The programme pays more than R8 million per month to its various organisations, thanks to its supporters.
For more information visit https://www.builders.co.za/builders-card