Hemingways Casino has donated R2.5-million to the Siyakhana Health Trust in support of its Enhanced Siyakhana SME Workplace Project for 2012. The cheque was handed over by Hemingways Casino’s Marketing Manager, Neville Austin, to Dr Simeon Odugwu from the Trust on Friday the 25th of November 2011.

Hemingways Casino was recently awarded a second 15 year term of license in Zone 1, which includes Buffalo City. As part of their bid proposal to the Eastern Cape Gambling and Betting Board, Hemingways Casino committed to R2.5 million of support to the Siyakhana Health Trust.

“We are very selective about the initiatives we support because we want to ensure that any contribution we make, whether monetary or in kind, is used appropriately for maximum benefit. We are delighted and honoured to be in a position to handover R2.5-million to Siyakhana Health Trust.”

“Since its inception, this organisation has consistently delivered on its promise to provide value-adding support and services to small and medium sized enterprises, allowing them to extend HIV/Aids support and other healthcare services to their employees. Thousands of lives in the Buffalo region have been touched, and positively-impacted, through the work of Siyakhana Health Trust,” say Dr Odugwa.

The Siyakhana Health trust for SMEs in Buffalo City was jointly initiated in 2005 by Mercedes-Benz South Africa, the Border-Kei Chamber of Business (BKCOB) and the German development agency DEG (Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH) to provide participating SMEs with tangible HIV and Aids awareness, counselling, testing, treatment, care, support and impact mitigation.

Unlike their corporate counterparts, SMEs in South Africa typically cannot afford to pay for HIV/AIDS treatment, care and support for their employees and dependents and have historically made inadequate provision for funding of health care benefits.

Although South Africa now has the largest HIV treatment programme in the world, less than 60% of South Africans requiring treatment is covered - mostly because of major capacity and infrastructure constraints in the public health service. Through its project’s, the Trust has helped to address the challenges around the delivery of health care services and HIV/ Aids treatment in the Buffalo region.

Since 2008 Siyakhana Health Trust has worked with Buffalo City Municipality and the Eastern Cape Department of Health to strengthen primary health care services in a select number of clinics across the border-Kei region. In addition to HIV treatment, testing and awareness, the Trust also looks after participating SMEs employees’ overall wellbeing including treatment for diabetes and cholesterol control.

Over five years the partners have committed over R12 million, with Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA) contributing 58%, DEG 36% (being PPP funds invested on behalf of the German Federal Government) and BKCOB and participating SMEs 6%. This allows will help fund this innovative health care model into 2012.
“We are enormously thankful for the support of our partners. Through their contributions and commitment, we have been able to extend the reach of Siyakhana Health Trust, and offer a greater array of health management services and support.

“We can now offer a fully-fledged professional healthcare offering which enables companies to take care of the health and wellness of their employees and families,” says Dr Odugwu.