Basco Paints CSR Overview
Basco Paints has engaged in activities informed by our CSR Policy that is centered on the following thematic areas:
Education and Skills Enhancement
Basco Paints is actively engaged in Education and Skills Enhancement under our flagship CSR Project the Duracoat Expert Training Centre. Started in May 2010 with an objective to turn ordinary painters into expert painters, for over three years the Centre has churned out graduates that are equipped with knowledge and skills that enable them earn a living as a painter.
Graduates from the Training Centre are highly sought after in various construction projects owing to the superior skills they acquire. In addition, the painters are trained in application of specialized finishes and hence are differentiated from the regular painters in the market. Many have gone on to start and successfully run their own paint contractor and interior design companies after the training.
We have trained a wide spectrum of individuals ranging from Architects, Contractors, Bankers, Economists, Lawyers, Interior Decorators as well as jua kali artisans and Form 4 leavers who have all passed through the same training indiscriminately. All applicants have an equal chance to be enrolled for the training and we do not discriminate on gender basis.
Close to 900 graduates have since been trained and the demand for the training is extremely high. The training duration of the course is one week. To date, we are the only paint company running Expert Training courses in this region.
Basco Paints has also been involved in educating bright students who are unable to pay school fees in order not to cut short their studies. For example, currently the number 6 top student countrywide, in Kenya’s KCPE year 2011- Remonah Maina is currently a Form 2 student at Loreto Limuru High School courtesy of the organization. She would never have made it to a prestigious national high school without our support; we intend to see her through to the end of her four years at the school.
Economic Empowerment
In close relation to our flagship CSR project, the Duracoat Expert Training Centre has produced graduates who have been trained on how to run a painting project and earn a living. Students are entitled to a discount after which they are able to make a higher mark up in their business. As they continue to carry out their business, they may also with time qualify for credit facilities when there is a need.
Arts and Culture
In early March 2013, the company engaged in an Art and Culture themed CSR, the Duracoat Spray for Change project that involved commissioning a group of 10 urban artists to carry out graffiti paining at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). The artists painted their vision of a New Kenya on 180 metre long hoarding at the airport, marking history by making JKIA the second airport worldwide to have graffiti and the first in the Africa, the only other being Schipol Airport in Amsterdam.
Delivery trucks for Basco Paints were then commissioned as canvases for these artists to showcase their work, creating “mobile” art galleries for Kenyans to experience. In June this year, the first event of the Progressive Initiative brought together Kenya’s diverse musical talents to showcase their prolific versatility. The concert featured live graffiti art by artists who participated in the Duracoat “Spray for Change” Campaign, namely Uhuru B, Swift9, Wise Two and Felok.
In August, one of the artists from “Spray for Change”, Wise2, was selected to represent Kenya in a global graffiti festival, Wall Therapy, in New York, USA, based on his on-going work in the project. In November, the Spray for Change team was commissioned to create a custom art installation by UNEP for the International Lead Poisoning Awareness Week and the Global South-South Expo held in Nairobi, Kenya.
Since the start of the Spray for Change initiative, we have successfully managed to create a link between the corporate world and art and demystified graffiti from portraying negative messaging to a more positive side. The artists have also grown in terms of recognition and are now able to earn a living and expand their portfolios. They have also been involved in Spray for Change on the move projects where they are directly paid for graffiti branding work they undertake.
Spray for Change was featured on CNN as a project that creatively engaged Kenyans to think about peace and the future in the run up to the Elections. It has also been featured extensively in local print and electronic media. The campaign was recently a finalist for Best Integrated Marketing campaign in Africa & Middle East region at the Loerie Awards in South Africa, and also won the 2013 OLX Social Media Award in Kenya for “Creativity Beyond Borders”.
Humanitarian Aid
Basco Paints has continuously supported various initiatives aimed at providing humanitarian aid for disaster cases. In 2011, the largely successful “Make a Mark Initiative” was carried out at the Sarit Center and Junction Malls where the public was mobilized to make a mark or signature on huge billboard in the atrium that had goodwill messages for the North Eastern Kenya community that was undergoing drought. The company pledged to pay for every signature made and the target was 5,000 signatures. The money raised was then donated to the Kenya Red Cross in food aid to the region.
Health
Hundreds of requests are received annually by Basco Paints to support various establishments with free paint. One of the criteria used to select an establishment is its objective. For this reason, we have donated paint to hospitals as part of our CSR, the most recent being Makunga Hospital in Kakamega, a needy and dilapidated hospital that required much support to effectively serve the community.
Sport
Our support for sport has been long standing and far ranging. We annually sponsor the Duracoat Duracup Cricket Tournament in July, The SCLPS Youth League Cricket and SCLPS Volleyball Tournaments, various corporate golf tournaments, including the Gertrude’s Annual Golf Tournament in September each year.