SEACOM Celebrates Its 10th Birthday By Giving Back To The Community

Every year on the 23rd of July, SEACOM honours the day it launched Africa’s first private high-speed subsea cable system along the eastern and southern coastlines in 2009, with a CSR initiative named Foundation Day. Community service has always been an important part of SEACOM’s culture, and, as such, the connectivity provider commemorates this special occasion by engaging in projects which help to uplift the communities in which it operates.

This year is particularly significant as it marks SEACOM’s 10th birthday, and with it, a decade of valuable community work. To celebrate its 10th Foundation Day, the organisation will be partaking in community-based projects across the country and continent, in the hopes of bettering the lives of Africans everywhere.

In Johannesburg, SEACOM will be hosting a ribbon-cutting ceremony and lunch at the Kingsway Centre of Concern to observe the school’s newly renovated offices and kitchen. This revamp is set to improve the day-to-day functioning of the school and the working conditions for the staff, and adds to the three years of support that SEACOM has provided to the school.

SEACOM’s Western Cape team will also be spending the day at an underprivileged school, namely Hazendal Primary School in Athlone. After donating projectors to the school earlier this year, the SEACOM team will be returning to play soccer with and hand out party packs to the learners. The team also hopes to spend time with the school’s teachers, offering support and advice where needed.

The SEACOM KZN team will continue its work with the non-profit Domino Foundation. SEACOM has already donated money to cover all the workbooks required for a four-year literacy programme at Ekuthuleni Primary School, as well as providing for block-out curtains and painted murals for an abandoned babies’ home in Durban North. The team is planning on painting their handprints and the babies’ handprints on a large canvas board to hang in the home as a reminder of hope and solidarity.

In Kenya, the SEACOM staff will be handing over a renovated block to accommodate three new classrooms at Karimani Primary School in Mombasa. The students will also enjoy games and informative talks on the day. Additionally, SEACOM Kenya will visit Thika town to present donated machines and gift hampers to the Mary Help of the Sick Mission Hospital.

More support will be given to struggling students in Tanzania on Foundation Day, as the company plans to donate desks, textbooks and other study-aided items to various public secondary schools in the Kisarawe district.

SEACOM’s Mauritius team will be participating in several initiatives to give back to the local community, including donating winter clothing and repainting the walls of World Light Orphanage; providing school materials and lunch for the beneficiaries and employees of the disabled AJIC Association, and handing out sports equipment to the children of Karate Shito Ryu Olivia Sports Club.

And finally, in Mozambique, SEACOM will pay tribute to its 10th anniversary of ongoing work with orphanage Centro de Acolhimento Sonho Real, located in the Marracuene district. By helping with school fees and providing school supplies and groceries, the organisation aims to contribute towards a better future for the children.

“We traditionally celebrate Foundation Day by participating in social responsibility and charity projects because we want to contribute towards making Africa a more prosperous and connected continent. It’s our way to thank the community for being part of our journey and to give something back ,” concludes SEACOM CEO Byron Clatterbuck.