MRM pg 1-5.pdf - Mabati Rolling Mills

growth in our businesses.
However, more peace, political
stability and better economic
management are becoming a
reality. Since the establishment
of Kenya Private Sector Alliance
(KEPSA), which I chaired for the
first two years, immediately after
one year, we started propagating
the idea that business must
flourish in spite of politics.
Businesspeople have taken this
on board and business is increasing. However, business is a family of
customers, bankers and financiers, suppliers of goods and services
and manufacturers. Members of SAFAL management team, staff
members of various group companies - it is because of you Insteel
and Mabati are going places and, to you all who are present here you
add to our capabilities to be what we are today. Similar is the case in
other countries where SAFAL operates. I would like to thank each one
of you. Asante Sana.
If we have to fight to remain in the marketplace then we have to
put more collective effort, more than that collective willingness to
make sure we not only survive but flourish. First, let me appreciate
all the support you have given to date. But, in future, we would like
to create stronger partnership.
We would like to share our plans of SAFAL with you. We would
like your participation, help and suggestions so that we can attend
to our objectives. We believe that SAFAL as a group is larger than
individual
companies in the group. We want
you to help us build capacity
not only in Kenya but also in
our neighbouring countries by
establishing yourself in those
countries and continue to build a
similar partnership that we have
here in Kenya. This will give us
all an opportunity to become
more pan-African.
I would like to raise
another issue: the other
major responsibility we
as private sector have to
accept is Corporate Social
Responsibility. The private
sector has a major role
to play to see that the
people of our country and
the continent are out of
poverty. Give them an
opportunity to aspire
for better standards
of living. The United
Nations has come
out with Millennium
Development Goals.
It is a concentrated
and focused effort for
the poor countries’
governments and the private sector to see that they meet their
targets by 2015. We are already at the end of 2006, yet no country
in Africa is nearer to achieving what they should have during the
last six years. Our government does not have the capacity to do
it alone. Private sector has to play an important role in seeing it
happen. Let us take Kenya presently - our poverty level is at 60 per
cent, meaning 19 million people go to sleep with one meal a day. It
is a major problem but we have to be a part of the solution.
SAFAL Group of Companies - Mabati, ALAF, Uganda Baati and
others - we are very aware of our responsibility. In partnership
with the European Investment Bank we have created EIB Mabati
Trust. It has set up a training institute under Mabati Technical
Training Institute where young women and men of Coast Province
train in Computers, Garment Manufacturing on industrial machines,
Technical Wiring, Metal Fabrication and Welding. Next year we will
add another two or three subjects. Presently, there are 200 young
women and men under training. We are now looking at plans of
how to make it sustainable. One of the things we have found is
that the capacity of the students to learn reduces dramatically in
the afternoons. We started giving them an afternoon meal which
improved the situation tremendously. It costs 50,000 shillings a
month to feed 200 students. We have started growing our own
vegetables. Some of our customers have given us 50,000 shillings to
provide the food under their name for a month. This way we would
like more of our customers and service providers to support this
project. I appeal to you to join us in providing excellent opportunity
by donating to Mabati Technical Training Institute. Be a part of us and
make corporate social responsibility happen.
We have also set up a dispensary at Mabati in partnership with
the Hindu Council. Aluminium Africa Dar es Salaam has a Health
Clinic on their premises and a new clinic has just been completed at
Uganda Baati in Kampala. All these provide much needed medical
services not only to our staff and families but also to residents who
live around. We have medical camps twice a year where our doctor
friends come and give a day free of charge providing medical
services. We try to make sure that all our managing directors,
managers, accountants and engineers get themselves involved in
some social work. Even our staff and workers in times of drought and
other emergencies fully participate in serving the society.
We have encouraged our senior people to personally participate
in trade associations to help articulate issues facing the investors,
to suggest the way forward. My request is be a part of this noble
work.”
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M A B A T I N E W S