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Marina Lottering |
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| You will never know how proudly South African you really are until you purchase a 46664 bangle. Thx |
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The idea for the 46664 Bangle was born out of more than just a need to provide ongoing funding for the 46664 campaign, but out of a desire to directly influence the lives of those who are most affected by HIV/AIDS.
So was born the South African precious metal bangle idea. The 46664 bangle concept was crafted with a precious metal angle - pure Silver, Gold and Platinum.
The initiative is a uniquely South African one, making use of the valuable resources the country has – Silver, Gold and Platinum. The other precious resource South Africa has in abundance is the positive attitude of its people.
The Bangle Story
The journey started when the concept of converting corporate social responsibility into corporate social opportunity took hold. The business model were designed to generate funds for the cause of HIV and AIDS while helping the ones who suffer from it most in the process, almost like having your cake and eating it.
It had to be uniquely South African, with a flavour that would intrigue the world with the mission to create sustainable revenues while trying to uplift and create wealth potential for the less fortunate of the population.
Mission
The aim is to create a high value 46664 bangle made of the South African precious metals, Silver, Gold and Platinum, manufactured and then hand-finished using skilled craftsmen who have been infected or affected by HIV/AIDS.
The product will be sold to a worldwide audience via a distribution network - not only providing a source of funds for the Nelson Mandela Foundation’s 46664 campaign to use in the support of their initiatives but also to create a means of upliftment, employment and to become the base of a wealth creation potential for each and every craftsman who chooses to engage in the program.
Our eventual aim is to be able to take the bangle’s demand and turn it into projects that will help people in a sustainable manner to ensure real lasting benefits to those living with HIV/AIDS and children orphaned by AIDS, which is so prolific in Africa.
Upliftment
What makes each bangle so special is that it creates jobs for some of our incredible people – taking them off the streets and giving them access to healthcare and education.
By taking these less fortunate people and giving them an opportunity to be part of the process of creating the bangle they are also given an opportunity to generate a sustainable weekly income. This gives them a real growth opportunity where they will gain access to precious metals and learn ways to incorporate this into their ethnic designs and crafts, thereby lifting the value of each curio created.
If all this is then coupled to a support program, formal small to micro enterprise businesses can be formed with the required guidance and accounting structure to bring them into the formal economy.
The manufacturing process of the 46664 Bangle will teach and ‘skill up’ the informal arts sector (many roadside vendors have exceptional crafting skill with no formal education), not only providing employment but the significant added bonus of skills development.
It is envisioned that a one year internship will be served, under guidance, in the hand-crafted finishing process of these bangles. These qualifying students will then be encouraged to set up the small to micro businesses focusing on traditional jewellery, which can be sold worldwide via the 46664 sales network created for the bangle sales.
During the manufacturing process the upliftment and skills training, as well as business support, are significant wins for all. This does, however, require absolute focus on the success of the bangle first as the means to support the program.
Potential side
Over and above the benefits to the crafters affected by HIV/AIDS through the production process, the 46664 bangle will on a global scale benefit people living with the disease through Nelson Mandela’s 46664 HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention campaign.
A generous portion of the proceeds from the sale of the bangle will be donated to 46664, which is a non-profit entity wholly owned by the Nelson Mandela Foundation.
Funds from bangle sales will be used to implement HIV/AIDS prevention campaigns aimed at breaking the cycle of new infections and ultimately lowering prevalence rates in South Africa and the rest of the world. The centrepiece of 46664 prevention activities at the moment is a play about HIV/AIDS called “Khululeka/It’s in our hands”.
Khululeka is a wonderfully engaging and educational play that tells the story of actual people living with HIV/AIDS. The power of the play lies in the way it is able to address all the complexities associated with this disease – for instance poverty, gender inequality, lack of education and economic opportunities, ignorance and myths, stigmas and taboos. It talks about effectively managing the risk around HIV/AIDS and empowers the youth to make informed choices. The play achieves this with great feeling, courage and humour. The audience is completely engaged and challenged to think and feel in a way that many other forms of education cannot do because it doesn’t have the same immediacy that theatre provides. After the play, there is always a question and answer session facilitated by the actors who are themselves trained counsellors. Sometimes, especially at community productions, there would be a recognised expert in the field acting as facilitator as well.
In addition to such outreach activities, some of the monies raised by 46664 are used to fund community based organisations doing worthy work related to prevention, care and treatment of HIV/AIDS. To date approximately R20 million has been disbursed to three credible funding agencies which give grants to community-based organisations in South Africa and other African countries.
Organisations
The Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund assists orphaned and vulnerable children to build sustainable livelihoods. The Foundation for Development in Mozambique similarly makes grants available to communities devastated by AIDS through income generating projects activities, home care, support for children orphaned by AIDS and so on.
In Ghana, the African Women’s Development Fund is a developmental agency that assists women’s HIV/AIDS initiated projects across the continent through their HIV/AIDS Fund. These projects cover all areas of prevention, treatment, care and counselling.
46664 is an innovative AIDS campaign that operates through creative partnerships at individual, corporate, non-governmental and governmental levels and acts as a focal point for collective efforts to eradicate HIV/AIDS. It takes the view that responses should be addressed holistically, taking into account that there are numerous factors that encourage the spread of the disease: poverty, unemployment and lack of economic opportunities, gender inequalities, stigma and discrimination, hopelessness and despair and so on. Thus the core mandate of 46664 is to bring hope to people, especially the youth, who are most affected and at risk of contracting AIDS.
The 46664 campaign is made through its association with corporates who recognise two bottom lines: social upliftment and financial returns – in other words companies who fully appreciate that ‘you can do better, by doing good’. Thus the social vision of 46664 Bangle is completely aligned with 46664, and the partnership is a mutually beneficial one, rooted in a higher vision inspired by Mr Mandela himself.
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