AVONTUUR NEWS - At a ceremony held on 26 June, at Avontuur, South East of Uniondale, Shell officially handed over its facility which has been converted into a local clinic.
The 1Ha facility was initially utilised as a fuel depot until 1992 when operations ceased.
Operational depot equipment such a tanks, pumps and piping were removed and all environmental assessments conducted indicate that the facility is fit for purpose.
The ceremony was be anchored by the chairman of Shell South Africa, Bonang Mohale and attended by the Executive Mayor of George, Counsellor, Charles Standers as well as the Executive Mayor of Eden District Municipality, Counsellor Vernatt van der Westhuizen. Members of the local municipality and local authorities representing the community were also be present.
“We are delighted to hand this facility over to the people of Avontuur. We believe that in its new form as a clinic, it will bring critical health amenities closer to the community. The donation of this facility demonstrates our commitment to the communities we operate in.
"Wherever we provide energy, we are part of a community – which means more than running our operations cleanly and safely. It also means working with people close to our operations to understand their concerns, learn from them and use their experience to provide programmes that bring socio-economic benefits to communities”, said Bonang Mohale, Shell South Africa’s chairman.
The conversion of this facility into a clinic was sparked by the realisation of the communities’ essential need for a basic health facility.
Avontuur is a small farming town located in the Eden District Municipality, about 120 km from George in the Western Cape. A large part of the population is impoverished with below average levels of income. The local community is supported and works closely with the farmer’s organisation, Uniondale Integrated Empowerment Projects(UNIEP) which largely drove the conversion of the facility into a clinic.
“We realised the community’s dire need for a local health facility, this inspired us as the Farmers Association and UNIEP to aid with turning the depot into a much needed health facility. We are thrilled by the results and also relieved that the community will have quick access to basic health amenities when needed,” said Horatius Strydom, Director of UNIEP.
This initiative is supported by the Western Cape Department of Health who provided the necessary health resources at the clinic.
The donation of this facility is a reflection of Shell’s Social Performance Plan to ensure community beneficiation that adds value to society and that also supports the national strategy or reducing poverty, unemployment and inequality.
This project is among a range identified in line with our plans to uplift our communities.
Members of the George and Eden municipalities as well as local authorities representing the community were present.
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