Innscor Africa - Head Office
Strategic Approach
During 2022, Innscor Africa Limited (IAL) supported initiatives which focused on sport, arts and the environment, ensuring fair and equal representation.
During 2022, IAL looked within the organisation to improve the skills of employees in the accountancy department by offering them the opportunity to attain the prestigious Chartered Accountant (CA) qualifications, by securing accreditation as a CA training centre. This initiative is critical, not only in securing the organisation’s long-term skills base, but also in empowering employees to achieve their maximum potential and meet their career goals.
Investment in Sports and Recreation
IAL/Baker’s Inn Future League (BIFL)
IAL relaunched the “Futures League”, a league aimed at growing the game of cricket by fostering talent across three age groups: Colts, U14 and U17. The league runs for eleven weeks and culminates in an exciting, spectator-friendly “Finals Day”.
The Colts is a new age group, geared towards the youngest players in the sport and offering them the opportunity to build up the fundamental skills of cricket while ensuring a fun and friendly atmosphere for players and spectators alike. Skills development and coaching are undertaken through indoor cricket matches and ball sports designed to enhance all-round skills and foster good sportsmanship and a positive environment. Several players from disadvantaged backgrounds are actively involved in the league, receiving intensive coaching and exposure to the game at a grass roots level and, thus, ensuring the longevity of the national game. The academy continues to grow this initiative and seek opportunities to support less privileged communities.
The other two age groups consist of three teams from the Alistair Campbell High-Performance Programme as well as three development academy teams: Rocview Academy from Glen View, Ramah Academy from Chitungwiza and Origens Academy from Hopley. This affords at least 90 development cricketers the opportunity to play against quality opposition every weekend, learning and receiving guidance and support from current 1st class and retired international cricketers.
While, historically, cricket has been a male-dominated sport, it has been gratifying to see both girls and boys participating in both age groups, with Kelis Ndolu, a U16 Lady Chevrons player, also playing in the league.
Another exciting facet of the league is live scoring, with every game scored in real-time on the Zimbabwe Cricket app, which features both IAL and Baker’s Inn as sponsors. IAL looks forward to further enhancing the development of talented, young cricket players in the country through this exciting partnership.
Investment in Sports and Recreation
The Zimbabwe U18 National rugby team
The Zimbabwe U18 rugby team (the Junior Sables), participation in the Coca-Cola U18 Craven Week. The team comprises 22 pupils chosen from different schools across the country.
The team participated in the prestigious Acadamy Week Rugby Festival, established in 1964 and held alongside the Coca-Cola U18 Craven Week held annually in South Africa. Grey College, a renowned boys’ school in Bloemfontein, Free State, with a rich and proud rugby history, hosted the 2022 Acadamy Week and attracted a large and enthusiastic number of players and spectators to the event. The tournament is held in high regard and presents a fantastic opportunity for Zimbabwean players to showcase their talents and further their rugby careers through potential recruitment into the junior tiers of the prestigious South African rugby unions.
The rigorous selection process starts at the schools level, followed by the provincial level, before bringing selected players together at a central, provincial tournament for the final selection of the national side. The provincial and national selection is overseen by a panel of experienced selectors with equal provincial representation, ensuring the player base encompasses equal and fair provisional representation, with independent and Government school player participation.
The squad consisted of players from diverse backgrounds, several of whom were from underprivileged communities, and highlighted the importance of the sport’s role in empowering youth and discovering the vast potential of young players across the country.
IAL played a significant role in offering support and ensuring that players were not limited by financial constraints in achieving excellence on a stage as prestigious as Acadamy Week. Towards this end, IAL provided financial assistance to six players to travel to South Africa, as well as sponsorship of the touring squad’s match day and off-field kits.
The Junior Sables put on an exceptional performance, with two out of three wins and a notable 20-19 win over the international U18 touring side from Namibia.
Investment in Animal Welfare
The Blue Cross Adventure Challenge
In 2019 the Group undertook to support the Blue Cross 500km Endurance Challenge, with 2022 the fourth consecutive year of support for the prestigious event.
Our contributions have raised the profile of this event, primarily focused on supporting animal welfare initiatives throughout the country. The 27th consecutive Blue Cross event in Zimbabwe took place in August 2022. Regarded as a unique athletic adventure, the event takes participants from the lowest altitude in Zimbabwe to the peak of Nyangani, along dirt tracks and trails and passing through some of the more remote areas of our beautiful eastern districts. The event is firmly rooted in promoting charitable contributions towards animal welfare initiatives, as well as promoting community cohesion and awareness in ensuring the sustainability of these critical organisations.
Financial support was directed toward The Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (“SPCA”), established in 1911 and, as such, the oldest animal welfare organisation in Zimbabwe. The SPCA comprises rehoming kennels and clinical infrastructure and, manned by passionate staff, provides care and a safe sanctuary for animals in and around Harare.
The participating team endevours to educate the populace on animal care to prevent ill treatment and animanl cruelty, proudly enforcing the ethos that no animal is turned away from its doors. The organisation acts as the official municipal pound but lacks governmental or municipal funding. As a result, the SPCA fully relies on charitable donations through concerned corporate entities and individuals, as well as through fundraising initiatives, highlighting the importance and relevance of events such as the Blue Cross.
IAL is grateful for the commitment and passion with which these organisations are managed. The Group views the work undertaken by the SPCA and related animal welfare organisations of paramount importance, and endeavours to provide ongoing support to the overall betterment of our communities and animals. IAL will continue to play a pivotal role in ensuring that the SPCA receive the necessary resources to execute their mandate.
Investment in Arts and Culture Support
National Institute of Allied Arts (NIAA) – Visual and Arts Festival
The National Institute of Allied Arts (NIAA) is a highly renowned institute that has been active in Zimbabwe for more than 100 years.
The Institute holds four annual festivals: Vocal and Instrumental (Eisteddfod), Speech and Drama and Literary and Visual Arts. Students around the country, from Grade 0 to Form 6, participate by submitting artwork on a theme selected by the Festival committee. IAL offered sponsorship support to the Visual and Arts Festival to assist in keeping entry fees at levels that ensured participation by a wide group of candidates, a sponsorship which began in 2012. We are proud to be associated with NIAA and its work, which recognises candidates who excel in visual arts, and remain passionate about helping to provide the opportunity for incredibly talented young artists to showcase their work. An exhibition of the best artwork is held at a selected venues and is open to the public for viewing.
All festivals were affected by the Covid pandemic in 2020, however NIAA did not let this derail the festival, making it “virtual” by displaying the selected artwork on the NIAA social media platforms and giving the candidates the exposure they deserved. The 2022 Festival has reverted to “in person”, allowing the adjudicators to physically grade the contributions and publicly display the selected artwork.
Investment in Arts and Culture Support
Training Outside Public Practice Programme (TOPP)Training Outside Public Practice Programme (TOPP)
The Chartered Accountant (CA) qualification is highly regarded worldwide and the Group is well placed to train Chartered Accountants due to the nature of its business, its wealth of knowledge and the ability to provide mentorship and guidance through the incumbent CAs across the Group. 58 employees in the Group’s Finance Departments are at various stages of training as Chartered Accountants, which is a testament to the potential talent pool within the Group and the ambition for growth shown by our valued employees.
The TOPP platform allows for training in an organisation with a focus on commerce and industry or public practice. This requires prior approval and registration through the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Zimbabwe (“ICAZ”). IAL successfully attained ICAZ accreditation in May 2022 and has since undertaken to promote the programme, offering well-rounded theoretical and practical knowledge. Trainee Accountants will gain an appreciation of the operating environment at an industry level and will be well-equipped to perform various roles and activities.
Investment in Our Environment
Friends of the Environment (“FOTE”)
IAL continued to support the non-government organisation, Friends of the Environment (FOTE), with the commemoration of the National Tree Planting Day (NTPD) held on December 4, 2021.
IAL was a major sponsor of the 2021 “Harare to Chivhu 140km Walkathon” held from December 1 to 3, 2021, whose objectives being to raise awareness of environmental challenges such as deforestation, global warming and climate change. An emphasis was placed on planting trees along the route, supported by several other tree planting ceremonies held across the country during the rainy season. FOTE planted 920 000 trees during the year and, since its inception in 2010, has, as a collective commitment with various organisations, planted 36 million trees.
IAL will continue to play a proud role supporting FOTE in its promotion of sustainable practices, minimising deforestation and replenishing and preserving our critical natural resources for future generations.
Investment in Our Employees Health
Group’s Investment into COVID-19 Hospital Facility
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Group invested approximately US$1.2 million into a high-care medical centre, providing awareness campaigns, provision of medication, counselling services and access to basic health care and hospitalisation in order to safeguard the health of its employees and their dependents during the pandemic. With the severity of COVID-19 on the decline and the pandemic moving towards an endemic, the Group continues to equip its health facilities to service its employees and their dependents.