Durban, KwaZulu-Natal: The Hollywood Foundation is committed to creating a positive change in people’s lives, through its Corporate Social Investment (CSI) initiatives. On Thursday, 25 May 2023, the Purple Team embarked on a transformative mission in Hammarsdale by partnering with Shap Shap Cinema, an organisation dedicated to empowering rural communities in South Africa.
As part of the collaboration, Shap Shap Cinema plans to train 100 women in baking, equipping each of them with a baking kit upon completion. The Hollywood Foundation has extended its support to this project through a monetary contribution to the organisation, aiming to foster self-sufficiency among these women.
Established in 2014, Shap Shap Cinema has been reaching out to underserved areas, offering crucial support and growth opportunities. With community centres in Hammarsdale and KwaNyuswa, as well as programmes in Bothas Hill, Quarry Heights, and KwaMashu, the organisation focusses on education and skills development to address various community needs.
Bianca Ivankovic, one of the Founders of Shap Shap Cinema, emphasises the importance of collaboration and community involvement in their work. She believes that partnerships with organisations like the Hollywood Foundation can create lasting change in the communities they serve.
Shap Shap Cinema provides a range of empowering programmes. The Abafundi Abancane programme focusses on Early Childhood Development, providing support to ECD centres and creches. The Youth Focused Leadership programme nurtures leadership skills among young individuals through extramural activities in schools and community centres. Additionally, Shap Shap Cinema offers an entrepreneurship and business readiness programme and a Girls Empowerment programme, which includes education on rights, counselling for gender-based violence survivors, and empowerment activities for girls.
In addition to their educational initiatives, Shap Shap Cinema runs a weekly feeding scheme, providing cooked meals and food supplies to creches, orphanages, care homes, and beneficiaries on their home-based care programme. The organisation receives support from Food For Life, Gift of the Givers, Grace Church, and The Robinhood Foundation for their feeding scheme.
To expand their impact, Shap Shap Cinema has created 10 children’s books in isiZulu, covering important topics such as HIV, loss, diabetes, bullying, racism, and albinism. The organisation aims to publish these books for distribution in creches, junior schools, and clinics.
Looking ahead, Shap Shap Cinema has ambitious plans to extend their reach and make an even greater impact. They are developing the Ubuntu Community Centre for the KwaNyuswa Community, which will offer skills development courses, dormitories for elderly beneficiaries, and a Kindness Kitchen providing cooking classes and meals for the community. Additionally, the organisation aspires to expand its team, run all programmes full-time, and extend their reach to other deserving communities across South Africa. “The provision of skills to members of Hammarsdale will ensure that the participants are able to put bread on the table. The contribution to this organisation bares testament to our commitment in empowering the unemployed members of the community to be self-sufficient individuals,” said Vuyisile Ngobese, the PR Officer for the Hollywood Foundation.
