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By EVANS
ONGWAE
By devoting more
than Sh35 million annually to social
responsibility, East African Portland
Cement Company powerfully demonstrates
its commitment to cementing ties with
society.
The firm’s social
agenda is evident in its assistance
of deserving projects in education,
water, famine relief and environmental
conservation.
And, for the leading
cement manufacturer, charity began
at home. “We started our programme
internally, working with our own people
on the issues affecting us,” says
Mr Ole Mapelu Zakayo, the Managing
Director. “HIV is high on the list
of issues. Internal corporate social
responsibility focuses on how best
we can help our own – hold the people
together and recognise their status.
We provide medical assistance, facilitate
peer counseling, as well as awareness
creation.
“We then looked outside and we are
now partnering with various communities
by employing a collaborative approach;
we first want to know their priorities
and then devise the solutions.”
For more than 65
years, EAPCC has played a central
role in nation building by providing
the lifeblood of the national construction
industry.
The Blue Triangle brand is a symbol
of quality and reliability. The company’s
products have built the foundations
of housing, education, health, tourism,
transport and communication, as well
as hydroelectric power projects throughout
the country.
However, besides
providing quality cement to its customers,
the firm is also deeply involved in
helping communities to lead better
lives.
The company has
helped hundreds of young girls secure
education by committing funds to ensure
they remaining school. Last year,
EAPCC built schools and boarding facilities
for children in Kajiado District.
One of the schools that benefited
topped the Kenya Certificate of Primary
Examination in the district. The impressive
results can be attributed to EAPCC’s
assistance.
In Sultan Hamud,
the company built dormitories and
supplied sanitary towels to schoolgirls.
This helped keep them in school and
saved them from early marriage or
truancy. Girls at the Kibini Primary
School were the main beneficiaries.
At the Elerai Girls
High School, EAPCC built laboratories
and dormitories to accommodate 240
girls.
On different occasions,
EAPCC has come to the aid of the hungry
in Kajiado, Machakos and Kitui. The
company engages its staff to help
distribute relief food, ensuring that
the rations reach the most vulnerable
or deserving cases – usually women
and children.
In the drier regions
of Kenya, EAPCC has built a total
of eight boreholes at a cost of more
than Sh1 million each. In these areas
referred to as arid and semi-arid
lands (ASALs), water scarcity is a
perennial problem that forces women
and children to trek long distances
in search of the precious commodity.
The tortuous search
for water has an adverse effect on
education for girls, who lack adequate
time for studies.
At the same time,
EAPCC has a strong policy on environmental
conservation. The company has in the
past participated in tree planting
campaigns in the Mau Forest, one of
the country’s vital catchment areas
that are threatened with deforestation.
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