Rutendo Nyeve, Sunday News Correspondent
UNTIL fairly recently, most large businesses were driven almost exclusively with a single goal in mind: profit. Maximising profits was at the heart of every action taken or initiative pursued.
In the past few decades, however, more business leaders have recognised that they have a responsibility to do more than simply maximise profits and one such is Mr Wellington Makonya. This has seen his Gold Phoenix stationery shops take a social responsibility to do what’s best not just for the company, but people, the communities, and society at large.
This self-regulating business model that has helped the company to be socially accountable to itself, its stakeholders, and the public caught the eyes of this reporter who caught up with Mr Makonya who narrated what the company has done for local communities.
By practicing this corporate social responsibility, also called corporate citizenship, Gold Phoenix has thus been conscious of the kind of impact they are having on all aspects of society, including economic, social, and environmental.
A visit to Sizane High School will see one being welcomed by a state-of-the-art scenery that can almost convince one that it could be a tertiary institution. The image was however, spruced up following a donation of a sliding gate by Gold Phoenix bookshop.
Driven by his passion for the education sector which is rooted in his teaching background, Mr Makonya has not only transformed the outlook of schools but has also reached out to the unprivileged intelligent students. This has been done through paying their tuition fees.
Mr Makonya has further exercised the belief that companies should behave in as environmentally friendly a way as possible.
This has been one of the most common forms of corporate social responsibility. Some companies have actually used the term “environmental stewardship” to refer to such initiatives. Cognisant of this belief, Mr Makonya has donated refuse bins to the National University of Science and Technology and other schools in Mangwe district, Matabeleland South province.
All these works were narrated by Mr Makonya as he took this reporter through his journey thus far.
“I have since been getting a lot of support from schools and colleges who have been ordering our products from our bookshops.
We have also in turn tried to help them, for example at Sizane High School we donated a sliding gate. At the National University of Science and Technology (Nust) we donated refuse bins.
“We have also paid school fees for intelligent students across the country. We have done that in Gweru, Plumtree and Sizane to mention but a few,” said Mr Makonya.