The true heroes of our Mandela Day campaign are our employees who continue to volunteer to make a difference through their acts of selfless generosity, humility and care for those in need.
Aspen has contributed towards the funding of a new mobile cancer screening clinic for rural and peri-urban disadvantaged communities.
Durban – JSE Limited listed Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Limited (“Aspen”), a global specialty and branded pharmaceutical company, is celebrating its 14th consecutive year of Group-wide participation in Mandela Day. Stephen Saad, Aspen Group Chief Executive said, “ Aspen has a track record of improving access to healthcare to all patients but more particularly the most vulnerable among us. This spirit of care extends beyond healthcare to many socio-economic development (“SED”) initiatives. We have so many challenges to address, that it can seem overwhelming. However, with one step at a time, we can move forward. Today, we celebrate serving more than 910 000 individuals through projects across more than 40 countries, and I honour our employees who are at the very heart of making a difference and who are the heroes of our Mandela Day programme. With every 10th person in the world impacted by poverty[1], we recognise that every effort, no matter how big or small, offers a promise of hope to those in need.” “We remain committed to an unwavering humanitarian spirit and actions that demonstrate generosity, humility and care and encourage others to join us and help make a difference to the most vulnerable among us,” added Saad. Aspen’s Mandela Day programme, recognised as the Group’s flagship SED campaign, was initiated in 2011 and has focused on partnering with worthy beneficiaries across the six continents where Aspen has a business presence. The programme has assisted in providing relief to abandoned, neglected, orphaned or abused babies, children and women; the elderly, hungry and homeless; individuals inflicted with mental wellness challenges; students who strive to achieve academically; those who are disabled; victims of political conflict; residents at social rehabilitation institutions; healthcare facility patients who need support and equipment; environmental and climate challenges; and inequality, among others. [1] https://ourworldindata.org/poverty
Johannesburg, South Africa – Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Limited (“Aspen”), a global multinational specialty pharmaceutical company, has presented a state-of-the-art high performance wheelchair to South African wheelchair tennis star Donald Ramphadi. Ramphadi, a French-open double quads champion and a prominent figure in wheelchair tennis, reached his maiden Grand Slam final at the Australian Open Wheelchair Championships in January 2024. He is undeterred by his impaired mobility and his fourth place single quads ranking by the International Tennis Federation is testament to his talent. On the occasion of the presentation, Stavros Nicolaou, Aspen Senior Executive Strategic Trade said, “Aspen is honoured to support Donald Ramphadi ahead of his 2024 season when he takes to international courts to defend his title at the Paris Paralympics in France, among many others. We also laud Donald for his nomination in the 2024 South African Sports Awards’ Sportsman of the Year with a Disability category. In recent years we recognized Donald’s exceptional athletic talent, his unwavering dedication to wheelchair tennis and his dreams of bringing back gold for South Africa. Aspen subsequently facilitated the customisation and provision of a state-of-the-art high performance wheelchair tailored to his unique requirements to assist him in reaching his athletic goals. This action endorses Aspen’s commitment to inclusivity, accessibility, and the empowerment of athletes with disabilities. It is also aligned to our philosophy of embracing sports, arts and culture as powerful unifiers to promote healthy lifestyles and reduce the disease burden on our healthcare system.” An overjoyed Donald Ramphadi said, “I am so grateful for this generous donation from Aspen which is a major boost ahead of the 2024 Paris Paralympics in France. I’ve previously played in matches where I’ve had to retire my lead because of my wheelchair which naturally shattered many dreams. I’m excited about this wheelchair and I’m more determined than ever to up my game and take everything that I can in the upcoming tournaments that I compete in.”
Johannesburg, South Africa – Aspen Pharmacare, Africa’s largest pharmaceutical company, has announced continued humanitarian support to Ukraine, confirming further donations of critical care products to treat hospitalized patients who have been impacted by the ongoing conflict in that country. Stavros Nicolaou, Aspen Group Senior Executive Strategic Trade, said, “Aspen is highly sensitised to the human suffering that war and conflict brings and which has had a devastating impact on innocent civilians. We are pleased to announce that we are further extending our support to Ukrainian victims of the present-day conflict with much needed pharmaceutical products and we are in the process of despatching additional supplies of Fraxiparine (for emergency surgeries) and Alkeran (for cancer) to treat patients in Ukrainian hospitals. We remain committed to providing ongoing humanitarian relief to victims of both natural and manmade disasters as may be necessary.” Aspen recently hosted His Excellency, former President of the Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko during an official visit to South Africa. On this occasion he said, “I am deeply grateful to Aspen for the invaluable humanitarian support provided to the people of Ukraine at this very tragic time. Aspen has helped countless Ukrainians with generous donations of life-saving critical care medicines. Aspen’s ongoing support reaffirms their understanding of the horrors of war, and demonstrates their unwavering care for innocent patients who are in desperate need of pharmaceutical products. I thank Aspen for their contributions to date as well as their commitment to providing more products to treat our patients.” One of the more important initiatives in this humanitarian collaboration with Her Excellency Ambassador and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to South Africa, Liubov Abravoitova, concerns donations of Alkeran primarily used for the treatment of paediatric cancer patients at the Odessa Filatov Institute of Ophthalmology. She said, “We thank Aspen for its solidarity with Ukrainian people and support to Ukraine with donations of life-saving medicines, as well as for its cooperation with the Embassy of Ukraine in South African in humanitarian projects.” Aspen’s latest Alkeran donation has been expedited specifically to assist in the treatment of a six year old patient who is at risk of losing her only eye. In March 2022 Aspen dontated life-saving medicines for 62 000 surgeries in Ukraine and also helped to evacuate South African medical students who were stranded in war-torn Ukraine.
Durban – JSE Limited listed Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Limited (“Aspen”), a global specialty and branded pharmaceutical company, is participating in Mandela Day for the 13th consecutive year with more than 60 activities in 23 countries. Stephen Saad, Aspen Group Chief Executive said, “Now, more than ever, communities globally are in desperate need of various forms of aid. They are deeply reliant on non-governmental organisations, the corporate sector, private non-profit organisations and local communities. Global poverty, social, political and environmental challenges coupled with limited healthcare resources are only a few of the hardships that desperate citizens are facing on unprecedented levels. Our employees have embraced Aspen’s Mandela Day campaign since we first launched our initiative in 2011 and we have remained committed to demonstrating an unwavering humanitarian spirit of generosity, humility and care for those who are less fortunate. During 2023 we will reach 865 000 beneficiaries since first engaging in Mandela Day, with activities focused on addressing poverty, confronting climate change and contributing to alleviating inequality. Our Mandela Day campaign has become our Group flagship socio-economic development initiative, and our employees are the heroes behind this effort. I am again encouraged to note the heartfelt commitment of Aspen’s teams from 23 countries who deliver on our purpose to improve health and quality of life of patients (and marginalised citizens) through this campaign.” Through Mandela Day, we live our ethos of Healthcare. We Care as we partner with a range of beneficiaries across 6 continents. These causes provide relief for abandoned, neglected, orphaned or abused babies, children and women; the elderly, hungry and homeless; individuals battling mental wellness challenges; students who yearn to be educated; those who are disabled; victims of political conflict; residents at social rehabilitation institutions; healthcare facility patients who are in dire need of support and equipment; environmental and climate challenges; and inequality, among others. Read more about Aspen’s Mandela Day activities at www.aspenmandeladay.com, follow us on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.
Johannesburg – Aspen, a leading global specialty and branded multinational pharmaceutical company, has positively responded to humanitarian calls for relief following the devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake, along with a series of strong tremors and aftershocks, that tore through southeast Turkey and northwest Syria on 6 February 2023. Stavros Nicolaou, Aspen Group Senior Executive Strategic Trade Development said, “Aspen has a reputation of responding to regional pandemics and humanitarian crises, both in our country and internationally. This is consistent with our core business philosophies of building sustainable communities where we have a presence and providing humanitarian relief to communities impacted by catastrophic events. The earthquakes experienced in both Syria and Turkey have devastated families and communities and inflicted significant human suffering. At these times we need to demonstrate a spirit of Ubuntu and stand in solidarity with vulnerable societies as we have done in the past. Aspen has responded by donating humanitarian relief in the form of critical care medicines which are used in emergency surgeries as well as thousands of blankets to ward off freezing conditions that are leading to patients contracting infections and becoming severely ill from hypothermic complications.” Her Excellency Ms Aysegul Kandas, Turkish Ambassador to South Africa, said, “On behalf of the government and people of Türkiye, I express my heartfelt appreciation for the outpouring of support and generosity from Aspen Pharmacare and the people of South Africa in response to the recent disaster that has befallen our country. Your donations of medicines, blankets, and other humanitarian relief items will provide much-needed aid to those affected by this tragedy. Your kindness and compassion have given us hope during this difficult time and I hope that this action will inspire others to join us in our efforts to help those in need. I believe that efforts like these will further strengthen the friendly ties between the peoples of Türkiye and South Africa.” Aspen confirmed that the critical care medicines and blankets are on route to Turkey and are expected to arrive in that country in due course. Aspen has a strong business presence in the Middle East and also distributes a range of pharmaceutical products in this territory. Aspen has engaged in similar relief efforts by donating life-saving medicines to treat 62 000 patients in the Ukraine and also repatriating 25 South African students who were stranded in that country at the onset of the war. It also donated thousands of medicines to Lebanon during the gas explosion that decimated parts of Beirut. Domestically, Aspen significantly contributed to restoring medical services in KwaZulu-Natal (“KZN”) following the rioting and looting that took place in that province in July 2021, and it has provided relief to victims of flooding in KZN where communities were devastated by natural disasters.
Stavros Nicolaou, far left with students who gratefully received Aspen’s donation of computers and tablets. Johannesburg – Aspen Pharmacare, a leading global specialty and branded multinational pharmaceutical company, has donated 25 computers and 30 tablets to Jiyana Secondary School which produced one of the top performing students in Ekurhuleni in 2021. This donation forms part of the “Gender Equality Today for a Sustainable Tomorrow” program of the United Nations and involved a collaboration between Aspen, HappiMe and the South African Presidency, where the Ministry of Women and Children is hosted. In March 2022, Aspen also refurbished Jiyana’s computer laboratory and provided additional equipment to enhance learning within this area of the school’s curriculum. These donations exemplify Aspen’s ongoing dedication towards ensuring the empowerment of our youth, women and South Africa’s future leaders. Aspen, together with the HappiMe Foundation, also donated sanitary pads for 894 girls in support of Women’s Month and as part of the Help a Girl Child Pad Drive in a bid to address and assist in combating the prevalent issue of period poverty, which has caused the stigmatisation and associated absence of female scholars. Stavros Nicolaou Aspen Group Senior Executive Strategic Trade said, “Aspen is fully committed to the future of our young people and these donations represent a gateway to quality education and future leadership opportunities. These students already have capable teachers, so providing this additional support will give them a further advantage and assist in prospectively producing additional top achieving students at the end of the academic year. The donation of hygiene products is in line with our key sustainability goals of ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all at all ages, as well as achieving gender equality and empowering women and girls.” Aspen officially handed over the donation together with the Deputy Minister in the Presidency, Ms Thembi Siweya who said, “We want to thank Aspen for this positive gesture and their keen interest in community development. We hope that the school management and learners will look after this equipment and use it to improve the learning outcomes.” Dr Keorapetse Tabane-Hlongwa, founder of the HappiMe Foundation who qualified as the first black medical oncologist in South Africa in 2008, initially approached Aspen to partner with the HappiMe Foundation in their dedicated fight against period poverty. This Foundation strives to provide sanitary towels to girls in disadvantaged communities in order to combat unnecessary school absenteeism. Dr Tabane-Hlongwa said, “We hope to connect with and inspire them, their story echoing ours, having grown up in similar communities as them. We want girls to be reminded that they can, they matter, they are seen, that they are.”
Shauneen Beukes
Group Communications Consultant
+27 31 580 8600
+27 82 389 8900
sbeukes@aspenpharma.com
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