---

Food and Beverage Company, PepsiCo and AMANDLA Social Enterprises recently celebrated the graduation of the 2022 Thembisa Safe-Hub PlayMakers. The event was hosted at AMANDLA’s Safe-Hub in Jabulani, Soweto. A total of 47 participants who completed the AMANDLA and Safe-Hub learnership programme across four Gauteng-based Safe-Hubs graduated at the event. In total, 89 PlayMakers graduated across all South African AMANDLA sites.

The PlayMaker programme is brought to life through partnerships between AMANDLA, PepsiCo and various stakeholders throughout South Africa. These partnerships have been formed with the purpose to come together and address the challenges of youth unemployment in townships by providing skills training opportunities with the goal of helping youth become employable.  

Executive Director of AMANDLA’s South African Operation, Ashmita Singh, said “The PlayMaker programme is an entry point into the economy for our youth, and our corporate partnerships, like PepsiCo, help us to bring this to fruition. We continue to support our PlayMakers after they exit the one-year programme and so do our corporate partners by making it possible for them to enter into future economic opportunities, either directly or indirectly.”

PlayMakers take part in a one-year, intensive learnership that focuses on improving participants’ job readiness. Many PlayMaker graduates go on to join their local Safe-Hub as permanent staff or connected to other employment or further education opportunities.

Director of Corporate Affairs-Operations at PepsiCo sub-Saharan Africa, Nico Moloto said it was encouraging to see the determination and resilience of many young people pursuing their goals despite the socio-economic challenges that they face.

Eight PlayMakers funded by PepsiCo formed part of the first cohort at the Thembisa Safe-Hub in 2022.  In the coming year, the partnership between AMANDLA and PespsiCo will reach new heights through the construction of a world class Safe-Hub infrastructure that will introduce multiple socio-economic development programmes targeting all segments of the community.

“This graduation acknowledges playmakers who we proudly commend for being remarkable examples within their communities with great work ethic, dedication and passion. We definitely know that their future looks bright, and we look forward to seeing them continue to thrive in life,” says Moloto.

“As a company, we place a strong emphasis on bringing a positive impact in our community by developing programmes that can address social issues impacting each community,” he concludes.

PepsiCo has also partnered with the Safe-Hub in Tembisa, through the Lay’s Replay programme which uses the power of play and football to address social issues impacting local communities through long-term educational sporting programmes. An innovative soccer pitch in Tembisa that's made from more than three million used chip packets, and fully recyclable artificial turf has been hosting educational sporting programmes for almost a year, with the turnout far exceeding expectations. This is pitch is the first of five which will be constructed globally.

Ends

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $79 billion in net revenue in 2021, driven by a complementary beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream.

PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales. In South Africa, the company’s brands include Weet-Bix, Simba, Liqui Fruit, Lay’s, SASKO and White Star.               

Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in Beverages and Convenient Foods by Winning with PepsiCo Positive. PepsiCo Positive is our strategic end-to-end transformation that puts sustainability and human capital at the centre of how we will create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more information, visit https://www.ssa.pepsico.africa/.

About AMANDLA Social Enterprises

AMANDLA is a proudly South African social enterprise with operations in 9 communities across the country, and additional projects in Germany, the United States and India. The organisation is the founder and developer of Safe-Hub. The NPO is driven by the vision of a world where all young people access equal opportunities, strive to realise their full potential and dare to dream. Today, AMANDLA employs more than 250 people and has positively impacted the lives of thousands of young people and their communities over the last 15 years. For more information, visit https://www.amandla.net/en/welcome/