Going the Extra Mile to preserve our heritage
30 Sep 2019
One day before International Rhino Day and three before National Heritage Day, over 200 runners and some 500 supporters descended onto the dusty veld of Huntington village to run a unique race, The Extra Mile. The aim? To raise awareness of the acute poverty in the area, and to raise funds to uplift it. The Bushbuckridge community are one of the poorest in SA, yet they live on the border of one of our most prized and valuable natural assets, the Kruger National Park.
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Both the 10km and 21km trail runs snaked through the dry, rural villages adjacent to the Kruger National Park.
Both the 10km and 21km trail runs snaked through the dry, rural villages adjacent to the Kruger National Park.

Source: Latest figures from Dept. of Environmental Affairs
The need to build an inclusive wildlife economy, particularly in strategically important geographies, is something that Investec’s head of Group Sustainability, Tanya dos Santos, appreciates.
“The people of Bushbuckridge, who live on the border of our largest reserve, the Kruger National Park are some of the poorest in the country. Youth unemployment is as high as 35%. Land, nature, animals- are really their only assets. It’s imperative that they become beneficiaries and custodians of the riches on their doorstep.”She goes on to say that rhino poaching is symptomatic of a much larger problem and as long as the communities around our natural heritage, feel excluded from ecotourism and the wildlife economy, they will always be vulnerable to being drawn into the so-called “poaching economy”.
Is the cost to protect rhino sustainable?
R1.3B
The annual cost the state needs to protect rhino
253 arrests
made nationally in first six months of 2019
Figures from Southern African Biodiversity Institute
Creating an inclusive wildlife economy in Bushbuckridge
Investec’s partnership with Innovation Africa through the Entrepreneurship Development Trust, provides thousands of litres of fresh water to water scarce communities. Furthermore, in education sector, Investec Rhino Lifeline support digital education, digital learning and skills development through the Good Work Foundation.
In an attempt to close the gap between education, experience and employment, Investec, in partnership with the Youth Employment Service programme (YES), has committed to employing about 1200 youth each year. In the past year more than 300 of these youth have been employed in conservation activities in Mpumalanga through Investec Rhino Lifeline's partnership with Care for Wild rhino sanctuary and Sabi Sands Pfunanani Trust. Listen to the impact these initiatives are having here.
One such beneficiary is Lindiwe Sibuyi, a 31-year-old orphan who dropped out of school in Grade 10. She heard about the YES programme bursary and applied to study hospitality. She now has a Certificate in Catering and Hospitality, Health and Safety and a driver’s licence. With these qualifications, she is currently employed at Sabi Sands Reserve. Her twin sister Thandy Sibuyi explains the far-reaching impact Lindiwe’s YES qualification and subsequent employment has had.

Even though Lindiwe dropped out of school, she is now the sole breadwinner for our family of six adults and three children. Even if she leaves Sabi Sands one day to seek another job, she has education and a certificate behind her.
Thandy Sibuyi, twin sister of Lindiwe- YES benefactor
Everyone pulls together to go The Extra Mile
This year because Investec covered all the costs associated with the organization of the trail run, funds raised through the sale of race tickets will go directly to the three NPO’s identified to benefit. More than R220,000 will be received by The Rural Water Project, Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) and Good Work Foundation (GWF).
With the financial assistance of Investec, all three of the NPOs were able to put forward runners to participate in either the 10km or the 21km run. This meant they got to run through the villages and meet those who benefit from all their hard work. One such runner was Lindy Thompson, of Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), another benefactor of Investec's through their sponsorship of the wild dog programme since 2013.
“I’ve never run anything like this before. Running through communities, past rural houses. Little kids joining in, holding your hand and wanting to give high fives. This event is so important because it helps us access these communities- create relationships and build trust.”

What we achieved here today is just unbelievable. We want the community to know we are vested in them, and I genuinely think they felt that in this unique trail run.
Michelle Scott, More Community Trust MD
About the author

Caroline Edey-van Wyk
Brand Editor
Colloquially known as Investec’s “storyteller,” Caroline curates and produces all the content that underpins Investec's Out of the Ordinary brand promise. She works across the business but specialises in the areas of Sustainability, CSI, Sponsorships and HR. Caroline holds a Bachelor of Journalism degree in Political Science and Broadcasting - cum laude. Before she joined Investec she was a broadcast journalist at Sky News and eNCA.