Social Investment in South Africa

Probably one of the best Social Responsibility projects in South Africa are the OutSurance Pointsmen.

I haven’t seen them around since getting back to JHB 10 days ago and I hope that the initiative has not been stopped as they made an enormous difference to the lives of South Africans who have to sit in massive traffic backlogs throughout the day.

Basically the initiative involves dispatching pointsmen on bright green scooters to busy intersections to try and assist with the flow of traffic. It really does work and can cut as much as 30 minutes off of my time to and from work when they are at intersections on our route.

Productivity up, less stress (less road rage) etc.

Please carry this on in 2010!

n April 2009 Adii Rockstar, Internet Entrepreneur and WooThemes co-founder, was approached by a well known Cape Town radio personality to create a fundraising website for a young disadvantaged girl.  This bright girl, Mariana de Sousa, desperately wanted to attend a school that could provide her with the type of education that she deserved.  Being accepted by the prestigious Rustenburg Junior School for Girls in Cape Town was a dream come true for Mariana, but attending one of the best schools in the country came at a price.

Due to time-restrictions, Adii was unable to help create Mariana’s website, but he offered this young girl something far better.  Adii agreed to pay all of  Mariana’s school fees in his own capacity.  He also offered to pay all other costs involved to ensure that Mariana’s transition into this challenging and academically orientated environment would be a successful one.

It soon became evident to Adii that Mariana was only one of many young disadvantaged girls in South Africa who possessed loads of potential, but no means to improve their skills and education due to the general condition of the community schools they have access to.  Soon after, The Rockstar Foundation was born.

The Foundation opened its doors on 1 September 2009 with Mariana de Sousa, the inspiration behind the Foundation, being entered as the first official “Rockstar Girl”. The organization, still in its infancy, is now in the process of building strong foundations and mutually beneficial relationships in order to secure the best possible education for girls like Mariana who only need the right opportunity to fulfil their destiny.

For more information on The Rockstar Foundation please visit their website here.