Italtile and Ceramic Foundation Trust report

Dear Stakeholder

I am pleased to present the Italtile and Ceramic Foundation Trust's ("Foundation") report for the 2024 financial year.

Background

The Foundation is a broad-based black ownership scheme, with the objective of conducting public benefit activities (public benefit organisation ("PBO") ref no 930044728) in a non-profit manner and with an altruistic and philanthropic intent, working towards the transformation and upliftment of previously disadvantaged communities.

The Foundation accepts and deploys socio-economic development and skills development donations in terms of the B-BBEE legislation and is authorised to issue section 18A certificates.

The Foundation's distributions are made to public benefit activities relating to education, sport and conservation, as outlined in the following narrative.

READ is a South African educational trust that operates broadly in the education and literacy sectors, specifically in educator training and the provision of school resources. In 2013, the Foundation partnered with READ to improve literacy through providing a homework support programme at Setlabotjha Primary School in Sebokeng, Gauteng. In 2020, a teacher-support programme was introduced to strengthen the programme.

The programme now works with four primary schools in Sebokeng and four primary schools in Hammanskraal. The total number of beneficiaries in this project is 14 462 learners.

The Foundation continued to support the FBF, an organisation that provides young people with a constructive recreational outlet while teaching them important life skills. In the year under review, the FBF continued to work with Setlabotjha Primary School and the Tshirela Group in Sharpeville, Gauteng.

It is rewarding to report that during the period, the Setlabotjha Field Band competed against 10 other bands at the Field Band National Championships and was awarded the Bertie and Ronnie Lubner National Champions Trophy for First Place overall. The Band was also awarded trophies for: Best pit percussion; Best brass performance; Best show design and Best dance performance.

The FBF has 306 band members.

On three days each week, a classroom tutor appointed and funded by the Foundation, conducts homework classes for primary scholars of all grades at the CTM Sports Field facility in Soweto, Gauteng. Approximately 42 learners attend the classes weekly.

In 2023, a library, adjacent to the classroom, was opened by the Foundation for the learners who attend these homework classes. This facility has fast gained popularity, requiring the Foundation to purchase additional books; we also continue to collect books from various external sources to meet the high demand. The reading material includes primary school books that help the children to improve their spelling, grammar, visual learning and general knowledge. In the year under review, the Foundation also appointed a librarian to manage the facility.

In 2020, the Foundation launched the Dignity Drive campaign in communities around Ceramic Industries' factories and Group stores, aimed at improving ablution facilities in local schools. In the year under review, Sandile Primary School in Kagiso was selected for this year's intervention. In addition, we also renovated the bathrooms in two schools in Soweto, Livhuwani and Thembalethu Primary Schools. The schools are participants in the Dreamfields programme (discussed further under Sport).

Materials required for the refurbishment project were sourced from within the Italtile Group, including tiles and sanitaryware from Ceramic Industries and taps from ITD. The total number of students at the schools is 1 994.

In partnership with the PEN organisation, the Foundation continues to invest in reducing the problem of poor quality ECD centres by offering owners and caregivers holistic support and a realistic opportunity to improve their centres themselves, thereby implementing changes that will be sustainable post-NPO interventions. Areas identified for improvement and support include facilities, health and safety, administration and education and learning.

The PEN team continues to operate from our CTM Sports Field in Soweto, Gauteng, and at Athlolang Primary School in Kagiso, where the teachers from the various centres meet weekly with the PEN coaches.

The Kagiso programme was established in 2019, while the Soweto programme started in 2022. There are currently 30 crèches in the Kagiso Forum and another 20 crèches in the Soweto Forum, catering for a total of 2 263 learners.

While PEN has two key programmes in the crèches, namely SOUNS and Duplo Play Box, the Foundation sponsored an additional programme - The Living Kids - that had initially been rolled out in 11 centres only, but has since been delivered to all of the other crèches during the year under review.

During the reporting period, the Foundation continued to support the Italtile Group in maintaining its community-centred sports fields in Meadowlands and Steelpark, Vereeniging, in Gauteng, Thohoyandou in Limpopo and Acornhoek in Mpumalanga. In addition, in partnership with the brands and business units in the Italtile Group, annual soccer and netball tournaments are hosted for schools situated in the respective communities where the sports fields are located.

The Foundation continued to partner with the Dreamfields organisation, which conducts soccer and netball clinics for schools in Mpumalanga (52 schools), Thohoyandou (16 schools), Vereeniging (12 schools), and Hammanskraal, Kagiso, Soweto and Empangeni (eight schools each).

We currently have a reach of 32 964 students through the Dreamfields' initiatives.

Students from schools that are sponsored by the Foundation, namely Forte High School, Salvazione Christian School, Mahareng Secondary School and Setlabotjha Primary School, attend the LWS for one week each year to learn about the importance of the environment and how to take care of it and preserve it.

In addition to the annual programme, the Foundation contributed to the World Environment Day held by LWS during the year. The total number of LWS beneficiaries is 3 220.

The Foundation continues to work with BirdLife South Africa to support the facilitation and development of community conservation projects via the Empowering People programme in Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal.

This project aims to promote education about conservation issues and thereby engender a positive attitude among communities for the protection of their local ecosystems. Goals include supporting local livelihoods by protecting species, securing ecosystem services, promoting resilience and fostering the equitable use of natural resources through community-led conservation and education initiatives. Key activities include upskilling BirdLife South Africa community bird guides, training environmental monitors/education officers, and investing in school and community education projects.

During the year under review, the Foundation also contributed to BirdLife's Red List Project. BirdLife is the official scientific source of information on birds for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's ("IUCN") Red List of Threatened Species, a compendium on the threats to species, their ecological requirements, their habitats and conservation actions that can be taken to reduce extinction. BirdLife, as the unique global authority on birds, is coordinating the process of evaluating all of the world's bird species against the Red List categories and criteria in order to assess their extinction risk.

MORE Community Foundation ("MCF")

The MCF is a non-profit organisation supporting social development and environmental conservation in Southern Africa. The programme aims to upskill and train black youth and local community members as qualified field guides at luxury safari lodge level. MCF's goal is to increase employment and gender equality in participating lodges.

The one-year career guide course comprises six months of theory, including 17 modules and an apprentice trails programme; six months of experiential training (in-lodge practical placement with partner lodges) and practical training through a "Get Your Hands Dirty" initiative in local communities.

During the review period, the Foundation funded one female student, who graduated from the programme in December 2023. The student has been successfully placed with the Timbavati Foundation, which will enable her to advance her skills in the workplace and further her long-term career prospects.

SAWC conducts nature conservation training that covers the full spectrum of skills needed in the conservation industry. The practical hands-on training focuses on providing courses that will open up career opportunities for people already employed in the conservation sector and for those seeking to enter the sector. The courses are also designed to help transform the biodiversity economy of the region and develop Southern Africa's existing protected area network and broader trans-frontier conservation areas.

In the course of this reporting period, the Foundation funded four learners to attend the Youth Access Bridging Programme, a six-month youth development programme aimed at transitioning school leavers into the field of conservation. The programme's structure involves five months of contact training, followed by practical experience in host organisations for three weeks.