Media Relations

RHI Social project sponsorship   02/07/2008

Within the opening ceremony of the new RHI plant in Isithebe/South Africa, Dr. Andreas Meier presented an initial cheque worth ZAR 200,000 (€ 19,000) to Father Gérard of “Brotherhood of Blessed Gérard” to start a long-term sponsorship of an AIDS project in the Mandeni area.

AIDS is a tremendous problem in Southern Africa. No other country has more people living with HIV than South Africa with more than 5.3 million people infected. Public and private health care systems are overwhelmed by the  great number of patients. The Mandeni area (where RHI’s plant is located) has gained a sad record even in the region. A representative test amongst factory workers in the industrial complex of Isithebe showed an HIV infection rate of 88%.

For these reasons, RHI will support the “Brotherhood of Blessed Gérard”, a relief organisation of the Order of Malta, which is dedicated to the common good and welfare of the people in the Mandeni area. The Brotherhood works in three main ways: AIDS Education programmes, Hospice (Up to five patients a day are dying from AIDS in this hospice in dignity, thousands have received home based care yet), and Children’s Home (The Brotherhood can accommodate up to forty orphans and sick children on their premises).

Within the next two years, RHI will sponsor the construction of urgently needed new buildings for the public benefit organisation with a total amount of ZAR 442,000 (€ 42,000). The sponsorship is part of the global CSR activities of RHI.

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f.l.t.r.: Dr. Andreas Meier (CEO, RHI AG) Albert Render (Site manager, RHI Refractories Africa) Father Gérard (“Brotherhood of Blessed Gérard”)