KZN school gets a boost from GMSA 

With the school year now in full swing, learners at the Siyanda Secondary School, in the impoverished peri-urban Sweetwaters area outside Pietermaritzburg, are benefiting from new classrooms, courtesy of the Key Group Pietermaritzburg and the GM Childlife Foundation.

The classrooms were officially handed over to the school on Friday, January 23. School principal Selby Madlala said enrolments had mushroomed to more than 1 100 last year, putting a tight squeeze on space for learners and teachers.

“We are in dire need of these classrooms. The Key Group’s assistance really means a lot to the school,” he says.

The R400 000 project was funded by the GM Childlife Foundation, an initiative of General Motors South Africa (GMSA) and its dealer network. The manufacturing giant and its more than 130 dealers across South Africa make a contribution to the Foundation for every vehicle sold, which has totalled over R12 million since 2010. This has been used to support to more than 10 000 children and 54 projects countrywide.

Mike Hall-Jones, managing director, Key Pietermaritzburg, says the donation to Siyanda Secondary was part of the dealership’s wider corporate social responsibility programme.

In addition to social outreach and mental health, the Key Group supports three rural schools with mathematics development, teaching resources and training through the Masihambisane outreach programme of Grace College in Hilton.