South Africa’s biggest mobile operator Vodacom spent R45 billion on procurement from suppliers with broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) credentials during the previous financial year.
This emerged when the telco yesterday announced it had achieved the highest score of level one contributor towards B-BBEE for a fourth consecutive year.
According to the operator, the achievement is a result of its commitment to the ideals of B-BBEE, aimed at attaining economic transformation for historically disadvantaged people.
Originally published in 2003, B-BBEE is a South African government programme that seeks to address the historical imbalances brought by apartheid.
It encourages businesses to integrate black people in the workspace, support black businesses, and give back to poor black communities who have historically been disadvantaged.
Businesses are awarded points which they can claim on a B-BBEE certificate, which entitles them to a greater chance of obtaining government contracts.
In a statement, Vodacom SA says its B-BBEE verification was based on the Amended ICT Codes of Good Practice for Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Gazetted on 7 November 2016.
These components are ownership, management control, employment equity, skills development, preferential procurement, supplier development, enterprise development and socio-economic development. Vodacom posted significant improvements on all seven components of the score card.
Additionally, Vodacom Group – which comprises the consolidation of all locally-owned subsidiaries – retained its level one B-BBEE status for the third consecutive year, the company says.
Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub says: “This is a fantastic achievement that clearly demonstrates our strong commitment to the transformation agenda and is testament to our commitment towards the transformation of this economy.
“For us at Vodacom, B-BBEE is not something we do to get points. As a company with deep local roots, we fully embrace transformation and its ideals which, among other things, aim to provide women with equal work opportunities so they can contribute meaningfully in the mainstream economy.”
As part of Vodacom’s commitment to continuous employment through skills development of its employees, the company invested R296 million in skills development.
It explains the investment takes into consideration, among other costs, internal and external bursaries, training of staff members, graduate and learnership programmes, and training of youth across the country through the Youth Academy.
For instance, Vodacom says of the 165 learnerships opportunities it created, it ensured employment of 109 candidates on a full-time basis for the year, of which 53 were employed in the company. Just over R16.2 million was spent on skills training for black people living with disabilities, it says.
On management control, the firm improved the gender profile of the board, which is now made up of 80% B-BBEE black board members, with 50% being black women board members.
On preferential procurement, Vodacom spent R45 billion on all suppliers with B-BBEE status. The mobile operator spent R17.5 billion to greater than 51% black-owned suppliers, in addition to the R18.5 billion it spent on suppliers that had greater than 30% black women ownership.
It also paid out R2.1 billion to black SMME suppliers within less than five days of invoice during the 2021/2022 financial year.
In the past financial year alone, Vodacom’s total investment in enterprise development amounted to R405 million.
The company also invested over R199 million in community projects to transform the lives of black people through the Vodacom Foundation.
“We are serious about the transformation agenda and the development of South Africa, and we won’t be deterred in our resolve to play an active role in moving South Africa forward by driving meaningful and sustainable transformation programmes to afford historically disadvantage people the opportunity to participate in the mainstream economy,” concludes Joosub.
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