Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres across South Africa will receive more than half a million rand’ in nutritious meals thanks to a recent partnership between Rama and SPAR.

Earlier this year Rama committed to donate a meal to a child in need for every Rama Original 500g Brick purchased from SPAR and raised over R600 000 through SPAR customer’s generous purchases.

The DO MORE FOUNDATION works in collaborative partnerships with key public and private stakeholders to meet the needs of young children as set out in South Africa’s National Integrated Early Childhood Development Policy but proper nutrition is vital to this process. Young children need the right nutrients to learn and grow optimally and currently around 25% of children under 5 are being stunted by poor nutrition.

At a handover event held at Entokozweni Place of Care in Hammarsdale on 20 June, representatives from Rama, SPAR and the DO MORE FOUNDATION came to witness first-hand the impact this donation will have on the 95 children and 8 teachers and staff at the facility.

SPAR KZN Marketing Director, Menelisi Luthuli said, “This is just another great example of business, communities and NGO’s working together to solve major issues affecting our society. It’s heartwarming to see how many young lives will benefit from this donation.”

“At Rama, we believe that every child should have access to a meal – a good meal. One that’s tasty and nutritious, packed full of goodness – which is why, we were so excited to see South Africans all across the country support this campaign. We would like to thank the SPAR Group and our fellow South Africans for their generosity. Through the Do More Foundation, you have helped to ensure that many young children get a better start in life,” said Sasha Sathianathan of Rama.

The programme currently supports 1,015 ECD programmes across South Africa with several based in KZN. In the wake of the devastating floods, securing consistent nutritious meals for KZN-based centres has become a key priority.  This donation will go a long way to help feed, not just the children, but the community that serves them. Rama and SPAR are grateful to be able to support these projects at a time when, especially in KZN, resources are greatly needed.