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Giving more women a seat at the table is key to facilitating growth and innovation within our business. This has further encouraged the management team to find ways to bridge this gap and empower women to promote a more diverse and inclusive mining sector.
I’m proud to say that Exxaro has been involved with some incredibly impactful initiatives targeted at empowering women. These initiatives are designed to benefit both female employees and women in the wider community.
Some examples of our women in mining initiative include personal protective equipment designed with women in mind as well as looking into specialised panic buttons on miners’ lamps to signal distress while underground.
Through Exxaro's Enterprise and Supplier Development (ESD) programme, business owners can access resources that would otherwise be unavailable to them. Three prominent examples come to mind when discussing this programme.
The topic of diversity and inclusion has become increasingly relevant across the globe. International organisations such as the Mineral Council South Africa (MCSA) and the United Nations (UN) have used this opportunity to set industry standards.
The goals of the MCSA and UN are to achieve gender equality by ending all forms of discrimination to provide equal opportunities to all – regardless of their race, gender and socio-economic background.
In addition to this, they are also looking to provide accessible, inclusive, and, above all, safe public spaces for everyone.
There is a great power that comes with working in a diverse, inclusive team as they often achieve the best results when working on a project together. To ensure that this type of team structure is supported, we have formed a diversity and Inclusion task team.
Studies have found that equality in the workplace promotes innovation and growth while inspiring creativity and instilling a sense of belonging. To fulfil our vision of powering better lives in Africa and beyond, Exxaro has embarked on a journey of transformation by implementing and driving initiatives that support this.
Understanding that everyone is unique with multiple facets of diversity can create a work environment that celebrates these differences and contributes to an organisation's success. Companies that recognise this will better be able to meet their growth and strategic objectives by enabling an inclusive company culture that empowers everyone.
We are committed to promoting gender equality in the workplace by empowering women. Currently, women make up 22% of the workforce at Exxaro, but there are real plans to increase this number.
To prove that we're not just making promises, Exxaro is proud to share that 43% of our young professionals in training, 33% of our bursary and scholarship recipients and 35% of the members of our learner pipeline are women.
While these figures are promising, it is predicted that they will continue to improve as these initiatives gain momentum.
While Exxaro is committed to empowering women, we cannot do it alone. Various government departments across South Africa have been mandated to promote diversity and inclusion across all sectors and levels of governance.
Legislation has been implemented to promote transformation, with one of the most prominent examples being the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) Codes of Good Practice.
In addition to this, the Department of Women, Youth and People with Disabilities and the Commission for Gender Equality are tasked with ensuring that the socio-economic empowerment and rights of women, youth and persons with disabilities are mainstreamed and protected across all sectors of society.
Gender equality is a pressing issue in South Africa and initiatives need to be put into place – and supported – to ensure that this equality gap is reduced and that all citizens have access to the same opportunities.