18 May 2007
A lucky KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) charity is set to be a big winner when South
Africa's pre-eminent bank, Absa and the KZN Premier, S'bu Ndebele host a golf
day at Zimbali next week.
The Absa Premier's Invitational, which takes place on Tuesday, 22 May, will
bring together business and political leaders for a golf day with a
conscience.
As part of its Corporate Social Investment contribution, Absa will present
R250 000 to Premier Ndebele, who will in turn donate to a charity of his choice
at the end of the golf day.
The Zimbali event is the fourth instalment of this nine-province competition
which sees Absa donating R250 000 to a charity of each premier's choice.
Charities from the Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga have already
benefited from Absa's generous spirit and it is now the turn of KZN charities
to receive a much-needed financial boost. The donation will not come a moment
too soon for the yet-to-be-announced charities, given the mammoth challenges
facing communities across the province.
The windfall to charities will not end with the R250 000 as Absa Private
Bank will donate a further R100 000 towards the charity of choice of the first
golfer to hit a hole-in-one on Tuesday, bringing the provincial total to R350
000 to be given away to charity.
The golf event is part of a much wider corporate social investment programme
at Absa that sees millions of rands being given to worthy causes every year
throughout the country.
At the Zimbali event the golf will be played on a betterball stableford
points system with the top three pairs set to qualify to compete at the Grand
Finale to be held in October this year. Absa Group Chief Executive, Steve
Booysen, says: "The game of golf is not just a stress reliever for many
businessmen and women. In line with Absa's brand traits, it is also an
intelligent, practical and enabling environment where insight is shared and
where business leaders inspire each other, a place where we can interact with
our clients in a more relaxed environment - the 'outdoor boardroom'."
On the day, the top three pairs set to qualify to compete at the Grand
Finale to be held in October this year. The six winners of the top three four
balls at each regional Absa Premiers Invitational event (6 winners x 9 events =
54 winners), will each receive a red provincial jersey and will progress to the
final.
These provincial finalists, together with 16 wild cards issued by Absa,
totalling a field of 70, will demonstrate their talent in the final at a venue
yet to be announced.
Enquiries:
Patrick Wadula
Head of Media Relations, Absa Group Communications and Public Relations
Tel: 011 350 5768
Fax: 011 350 6027
Cell: 082 904 0713
E-mail: patrick.wadula@absa.co.za
Lindiwe Khuzwayo
Tel: 031 366 9285
Fax: 031 366 9284
Cell: 078 176 8536
E-mail: tandoc@absa.co.za
Issued by: Office of the Premier, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
18 May 2007
Source: SAPA
