Construction World August 2021

country, cognizant of the fact that Zimbabwe's Human Development Index value over the years has been low. Published annually by the United Nations, the index is a composite measure that measures life expectancy, educational attainment, and income level. Zimbabwe's current HDI value is 0.57 which puts the country in a medium human development category, positioning it at 150 out of 189 countries and territories in the world. Therefore, PPC Zimbabwe has emphasized those areas that would contribute significantly to reducing the risk and impact on the health and safety of communities and help establish preventative and control measures. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 adversely disrupted our way of life, leading to widespread infection and deaths in communities and the world over. PPC Zimbabwe took on the challenge as part of health and disaster mitigation by undertaking several interventions. PPC Zimbabwe donated 500 bags of cement for the renovation of a COVID-19 Isolation and treatment centre at Mater Dei Hospital in Bulawayo. This was at a cost of ZWL152 381. Isolation centres are essential in ensuring that there is no cross-infection at health facilities where patients go for treatment. We have established a similar facility at Gwanda Provincial Hospital renovating the old Eye Unit and designating it an isolation centre for COVID-19 that would serve the greater community in the province. The company also assisted in the incinerator's repair at the hospital, which is an essential piece of equipment for waste disposal. The total cost of the project was ZWL252 618. As part of COVID-19 disaster mitigation activities, PPC partnered with the municipality of Gwanda in disinfecting the town against COVID-19, an exercise that cost USD2 754. With the pandemic spreading rapidly across the country, there was a growing demand for the local manufacture and supply of personal protective equipment (PPEs). PPC responded by assisting a university to develop and distribute hand sanitisers to the community. PPC Zimbabwe also continues to act decisively in the fight against the pandemic through in-house initiatives where we tackle health and safety concerns of the workforce and their families at the facilities in Bulawayo, Harare and Colleen Bawn. In 2018 Cyclone Idai hit parts of Zimbabwe, and the disaster left a trail of destruction that swept away homes, damaged infrastructure and led to a regrettable loss of life. A huge humanitarian effort began, and corporate entities came to help the victims. PPC Zimbabwe helped minimize the Cyclone Idai victims' displacement and contributed to the compensation for their loss. We donated 90 tons of cement towards the rehabilitation of homes of the victims at a total cost of USD15 000. The donation was to the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, His Excellency E D Mnangagwa. PPC Zimbabwe continues to render support in education. The company built and equipped a solar-powered Science and computer lab at Sojini Secondary School in rural Matabeleland North at a cost of USD77 000. The project is of significance because of the low pass rate and uptake of science subjects by pupils in the province. It will help kindle interest in the science subjects and increase the number of pupils qualifying for the growing number of universities in the province and the country. PPC Zimbabwe also provides practical, on-the-job training for undergraduate students in PPC communities and the country. The student attachment program gives the learners an opportunity for learning, development and exposure in the working environment provided by the company, while also assisting them to meet their university course requirements. This is at a cost of USD14 000. In our quest to create employment and support income-generating activities, PPC Zimbabwe has established and is supporting sewing factories at the Bulawayo and Colleen Bawn Factories (total spend USD123 879) for women's empowerment. Both factories, currently

closed for lockdown, are ready to produce work suits and other requirements for the company and surrounding community. This initiative resulted from consultations through stakeholder forums established to build strong, constructive relationships that address grievances from local communities. Another project of note that has benefitted communities near our factories is the Mutare Road rehabilitation. The company repaired the access road to the Msasa factory in Harare from Mutare road for USF68 791,44. The road, which was in a state of disrepair, also provides access to a few small and medium scale industries next to the PPC Harare Plant. In the communities where we have operations, PPC Zimbabwe will work to respect the human rights, dignity, aspirations, and culture of the indigenous people. We commit to protect their cultural heritage from any adverse effects of our activities. The company built 4 houses for families affected by our limestone crushing operations at a cost of USD20 000 at Shamva village. PPC also drilled and equipped one community borehole at a cost of USD10 000 for the same families and the community at large. In our journey to showcase how PPC Africa values its sustainable contribution to the growth and development of the communities that it operates in, we will next look at our markets in Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). 

23 CONSTRUCTION WORLD AUGUST 2021