The SASKO Siyasizana “Play Better” campaign, aimed at building, restoring, and upgrading 1000 playgrounds throughout Mzansi over the next two years, celebrated the start of many playground handovers on Friday, September 2, 2023.

To reinforce SASKO’s “people who make things better” brand repositioning messaging, the brand kicked off its mission in Durban with a play day activation at Inkonkoni Primary School in Umlazi V Section, handing over a brand-new playground to raise awareness on the importance of positive play and its benefits for children in communities.

The “Play Better” campaign targets early childhood development (ECD) and foundation phase learners with a strong anti-bullying message by promoting active and positive play.

The 2022 LEGO Playwell Report reveals that the mental, physical, and emotional benefits of developmental and social play at an early age can help reduce the prevalence and impact of bullying by allowing children to develop life skills to manage future interactions.

SASKO has been at the center of communities since 1930, and the SASKO Siyasizana initiative has always focused on building a solid foundation for the future generation. Siyasizana, which means ‘we are helping each other’, previously provided pre-primary and primary school children with reading books and educational material.

Pepsico South Africa Marketing Manager Nowawethu Ngadlela highlighted SASKO’s commitment to touching lives from a young age, as that is where children are the most vulnerable.

“While we are selling bread, we are also giving back to the communities,” says Ngadlela.

“We can’t rely solely on the government to make a difference; we have to play our part in making a difference. At SASKO, we really care and have always been committed to caring for South African communities. If we can do something to care and make life better on a daily basis, it becomes infectious, and then the rest of the world starts doing the same. Can you imagine what kind of communities we will have?

“The vision we have is to make the world better, starting with our young ones, and hopefully, by showing how we care, we can assist in ensuring that they, as the next generation, can be better and more caring people, she added.

Sthembiso Qwala, Inkonkoni Primary School principal, who admitted that he was caught by surprise by this handover, was left elated by SASKO’s kind gesture.

Obviously, we are happy with this gesture, which is the first of its kind in our school,” says Qwala.

“This will go a long way in assisting the teachers with the development of our learners’ physical and emotional well-being going forward.”

Consumers can visit the SASKO website at www.sasko.co.za and follow its social media pages for more information about this exciting campaign as well as the upcoming playground handovers.