AFRICA – Sanlam, a financial service group, has donated US$2.3 million to 32 African countries where it operates to help initiatives in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic through its Sanlam Emerging Markets (SEM).
According to the press statement, the funds are aimed at assisting efforts in ‘flattening the curve’ and to support various initiatives to combat the spread and the impact of the virus and will be used for personal protective equipment (PPEs), contributions to national solidarity funds, food relief and assist schools with e-learning.
SEM CEO, Heinie Werth said each of the 32 countries as well as other markets Sanlam operates in, will be allocated the funds for use at the discretion of Sanlam subsidiaries and associate companies in those countries. Uganda is one of the expected beneficiaries although it is not yet clear how much each country will get from the donation.
“The scale and impact of this pandemic on both Africa’s people and economies can be dire, but if we act in solidarity and collectively, we can contribute to the ongoing efforts to attenuate the impact of COVID-19,” said Werth.
“As a leading pan-African financial services company with a rich history of ‘doing well by doing good’ and good corporate citizenship, we are proactively taking responsibility to support the countries in which we operate to fight COVID-19,” he said.
“We believe that such an unprecedented time of uncertainty as we are now in calls for us to act in order to contain the impact of this scourge. We are confident that our contribution, along with those of like-minded corporates and other donors, will go a long way towards flattening the curve of this virus in Africa and elsewhere.”
Sanlam Emerging Markets (SEM) is responsible for Sanlam’s financial business services (life assurance, general insurance, banking, credit, health, bancassurance and asset management) in emerging markets outside South Africa.
The cluster aims to ensure sustainable delivery and growth across its various businesses and, as part of the Sanlam Group’s vision, strives to lead wealth creation in those markets.
There are 3,151,558 global coronavirus infections with 35,847 cases found in Africa.
