Explorers drive more than 5000 km to reach 300 young learners in Kunene
A Bannerman team has just completed a 7-day, 5500 km roundabout trip in the Kunene Region to reach 300 learners in eight schools scattered across the region’s vast 115000 square kilometres.
Local exploration company, Bannerman Mining Resources Namibia, said it is now the 13th year since the company started it Early Learner Assistance Programme to provide school uniforms, shoes and other school essentials to young learners. For the 2023 run, the Kunene Region was chosen in consulation with the Ministry of Education.
The 300 learners targetted this year bring the total number of beneficiaries to 3600 since the programme’s inception.
The Bannerman team drove for 7 days from the Erongo Region to the 8 sparsely located schools, personally delivering the ELA uniform packages that consist of a full uniform set, including school socks, shoes and a school bag. In total, 5,482kms were covered to reach some very remote, hard to access, community-made schools. This was an exercise that brought deep gratitude from the community members of these areas. Community members as old as 92 years came to witness their grandchildren receiving their very first school uniform from the Bannerman team.
Bannerman said it seeks to make the ELA programme “open source” to encourage other mining and exploration companies to adopt and improve the initiative within their own host communities. In 2022, Namibia Rare Earths became the next company to adopt the ELA Programme, rolling it out into the Khorixas area in which it operates, and repeating the initiative this year.
Learner at Ondevete Unit, Opuwo excited to receive her uniform package from Matjiua Hengua, Senior Stakeholder Relations at Bannerman Mining Resources Namibia.
Bannerman’s Senior Stakeholder Relations Advisor, Matjiua Hengua encouraged the learners to focus on their education despite the challenges so that they can bring development to their communities.
The company received the 2023 ESG Forum Award in the category ‘Community Engagement’ at the African Mining Indaba in Cape Town. Bannerman Resources is the owner of the proposed Etango Uranium mine in the Erongo Region.
