Socio-Economic Development

Socio-economic development (SED) forms an integral part of our business strategy, creating shared value and ensuring we maintain our operating and social licences to operate. SED is a requirement of our gaming conditions and also forms part of our B-BBEE and corporate governance processes.

Our social capital is accumulated through the contributions of our units and group initiatives that are close to the hearts of our communities. SED and Corporate Social Investment (CSI) ensure our long-term business sustainability by maximising shared value in the communities in which we operate. Return on investment is measured by the lasting positive impact and self-sustaining structure of all projects. Our employees invest their personal time in the social investment projects that resonate with them, from volunteering and mentoring to providing business advice and training.

Highlights

Invested R27.6 million in SED projects, most of which contributed to Sun International's prioritised SDGs
Over 25 schools are being supported through our "Adopt a School" group project nationwide
The pass rate in hospitality and consumer studies programmes at our partner schools continues to increase each year
Recorded our CSI (in kind donations) spend for 2024 - R4 million invested.

Strategy

As a responsible corporate citizen, Sun International understands the necessity of empowering communities in the areas in which we operate. Therefore, SED forms a key component of the group’s sustainable business strategy. We not only create economic value, but also aim to maximise the social impact we have on the communities as well as on our business by creating shared value.

Creating Shared Value:

60% of the SED spend is allocated to group projects.
40% is allocated to property-specific projects.
SED initiatives are focused on education, sports, and arts and culture initiatives.
Effective stakeholder engagement is critical to the group and continues to receive focus.

CORPORATE SOCIAL INVESTMENT (CSI)

CSI is a unit-specific operational expense allocated to projects of interest. Generally, CSI initiatives are funded by business units and donations received from guests and partners. The donations are not part of the NPAT for calculating the group’s SED spend per the B-BBEE Codes but are additional to the yearly SED spend.

Sun International invests in various initiatives and has contributed to CSI spend since inception with no tracking system. A formal system was implemented in 2019 to track all donations with and without monetary value.

Community Engagement Approach

Sun International values community stakeholder engagement to build and maintain transparent relationships in the communities in which we operate. Our stakeholders include communities and traditional leaders, provincial and national government, NGOs, NPOs, PBOs, foundations, and labour organisations. The group SED and stakeholder engagement specialist, along with SED professionals at the various units, are responsible for engaging with stakeholders to ensure mutual shared value and sustainable SED.

The group’s community engagement approach is regularly updated and refreshed to ensure that all engagement and interventions align with the sustainability strategy, the provincial and national growth and development plans.

Watch our case studies

SED Programme Focus Areas

Education

Sports Development

Arts & Culture

SED Applicants

The following criteria applies when registering for any socio-economic development assistance:

Must be a registered non-profit organisation (NPO) and/or be a section 21 (not for gain) company and /or a registered charitable trust.
Must have been in existence for more than two years; and
Have audited financial statements.

Exclusions

Sun International’s socio-economic development programme does not provide assistance for:

Religious groups and their activities.
Political parties and their activities.
Travel.

Online Application Form