This year Konica Minolta South Africa are returning to Mandela’s area of birth to donate trees to schools and community centres in the region. Working with their CSI partner, Food & Trees for Africa, Konica Minolta have donated 99 trees to both Qunu and Mvezo near Mthatha in the Eastern Cape. The 99 trees planted in each village commemorate 99 years since Mandela’s birth.
This initiative follows in the wake of 95 trees donated in 2016 to Lamyeni, Alice, Mvezo and Qunu in the Eastern Cape. These are the areas in the Eastern Cape where Madiba spent his formative years, the areas that shaped him into the man that South African’s came to know.
Working together with local leadership, Food & Trees for Africa have identified a total of 7 beneficiaries to receive trees from Konica Minolta South Africa. A mixture of indigenous shade trees and fruit trees will be planted.
Chief Nkosi Zwelivelile (“Mandla”) Mandela and his mother, Mam Nolusapho have identified two schools in the area to receive trees. Makgatho Lewanika Mandela Primary School will receive 40 trees, and Nolusapho Early Childhood Development Centre will receive 10 trees. Both schools are named for Chief Mandela’s parents.
Konica Minolta South Africa staff volunteers from the Johannesburg, Mthatha and East London branches will travel to Mvezo and Qunu on the 26th and 27th of July 2017 to assist with tree planting in the area.
“Returning to areas where we have previously planted trees is incredibly important, to re-iterate training and assist the community where needed. It has been great to work with a sponsor such as Konica Minolta South Africa who enable such projects to bear fruit ” says Emily Jones, Trees and Carbon Manager for Food & Trees for Africa.
The allocation of 198 trees to Mvezo and Qunu brings Konica Minolta’s total trees donated since 2008 to 30 191.
