Absa colleagues to participate in the Nelson Mandela Legacy Ride4Hope event

Twenty-five Absa Group colleagues, clients and ambassadors in South Africa will take part in the Nelson Mandela Legacy Ride4Hope cycling event from 28 September – 01 October 2022, aimed at raising funds for charity and creating a platform to carry Mandela’s message of hope along the route between Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.

The Nelson Mandela Legacy Ride4Hope is one of many events mandated by the Nelson Mandela Foundation to mark the centenary commemoration of South Africa’s first democratically elected president.

Riding has always been synonymous with freedom – especially when one rides for fun as opposed to professional competitions. In South Africa, there is – arguably – no name that is more synonymous with freedom as that of struggle icon Nelson Mandela. For that reason, it, therefore, seems apt to honour Nelson Mandela’s centenary celebration with a bicycle ride.

Over the four days, the ride makes stops at various towns from Gauteng, Free State and KwaZulu-Natal, making notable contributions in the form of donations to various schools, early childhood development centres and orphanages along the route. The 550km event of hope embodies the values of Nelson Mandela with the aim of making a fundamental difference to the lives of ordinary South Africans. In its 5th year, the event intends to make a lasting impact in communities along the cycle route.

?Some of the beneficiaries will include:

• The Seventh Day Adventist Primary School in Soweto, which is a stone throw away from Nelson Mandela House in Vilakazi Street. Over the years, Ride4Hope has contributed multiple donations, including a computer room and renovations. This year, the school will receive school shoes and sanitary towels.
• Impucuko Primary School, located in Bethlehem in Free State, will benefit from Ride4Hope’s Digital Villages programme of equipping the schools with a computer facilities. The lab will not only be of benefit to the school, but will also be an upskilling and entrepreneurship hub.?Also to be introduced is a two-year programme for post matric unemployed youth.
• Braamfischerville Cricket Hub in Dobsonville, Soweto, which offers sporting opportunities for youth in Soweto and surrounding areas in the form of afterschool programmes. The Ride4hope will be making a contribution towards repurposing and equipping a room with computers.
• Ride4Hope will also make contributions towards renovations and upgrades of a primary school in Pietermaritzburg

The Absa colleagues will join 50 other cyclists that will also be taking part in the event. As a purpose-led organisation, we strive to be an active for good in everything we do and play a shaping role in communities where we operate. Supporting this initiative is one way that helps us realise that goal. We wish our colleagues and all those that will be taking part success they deliver hope with each pedal stroke.