27 January 2010
Anglo American announces a new enterprise development venture that will help to generate more jobs, support entrepreneurship and strengthen local economies in South Africa.

This commitment is a pledge to the Business Call to Action (BCtA) – a global initiative that challenges companies to apply their core business expertise, technology and innovative spirit to tackle poverty, promote growth in developing countries and contribute to the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Anglo American is the first company from the extractive industry to have a project accepted by the BCtA.

Anglo American’s commitment to the BCtA is to establish 12 enterprise development hubs in high unemployment areas in South Africa, within the ongoing Anglo Zimele initiative. This venture is expected to create 25,000 new jobs in up to 1,500 new businesses across South Africa over the next seven years.

Anglo American will provide financing for small business start-up funds targeting the most vulnerable segments of society, in addition to providing mentoring and access to supply chain opportunities. Looking to the future, Anglo American will also seek to further increase its enterprise development activities in Chile and Brazil.

Cynthia Carroll, Chief Executive of Anglo American, said: “We are delighted that the expansion of Anglo American’s long-established Anglo Zimele programme has been recognised by the Business Call to Action and we are continuing to review further opportunities to grow this successful and enormously valuable community programme.”

"Long term economic growth is vital to the fight against global poverty and business investment is vital to building economic growth,” said Helen Clark, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). "Today, business leaders are rewriting the value equation, to show that true worth comes not only from profits but from making a positive difference."

The MDGs are eight goals that respond to the world's main development challenges to be reached by 2015. They were adopted by 189 world leaders at the Millennium Summit in 2000. The Goals represent a global commitment to promote poverty reduction, education, maternal health and gender equality and aim to combat child mortality, AIDS and other diseases. Since 2008, 19 companies have developed business initiatives that contribute to the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and to their own commercial success.

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For further information:

Anglo American - United Kingdom
James Wyatt-Tilby, Media Relations
Tel: +44 (0)20 7968 8759

Jon Samuel, International Social and Community Development Manager
Tel : +44 (0)20 7968

Anglo American - South Africa
Pranill Ramchander, Media Relations
Tel: +27 (0)11 638 2592

UNDP
Sandra Macharia
[email protected]
Tel: +1 212 906 5377

Notes to Editors:

Anglo American plc is one of the world’s largest mining groups. With its subsidiaries, joint ventures and associates, it is a global leader in platinum group metals and diamonds, with significant interests in copper, iron ore, metallurgical coal, nickel and thermal coal, as well as a divestment portfolio of other mining and industrial businesses. The Group is geographically diverse, with operations in Africa, Europe, South and North America, Australia and Asia.

Anglo Zimele, Anglo American’s enterprise development and investment fund in South Africa, has created numerous sustainable, commercially viable enterprises and empowered entrepreneurs to operate in the mainstream economy. Currently, through its three funds, Anglo Zimele has invested into 509 businesses, which collectively employ 9,514 people. The Supply Chain Fund, the Anglo Khula Mining Fund and the Small Business Start-Up Fund have interests in a diverse portfolio of enterprises with a collective turnover of R1.5 billion. Anglo Zimele is currently launching a fourth fund for enterprise development which is designed to help women, the disabled and young people in Anglo American’s mining communities to establish and run their own small businesses with entrepreneurial skills training as a starting point.

The Global Partnership for the Business Call to Action with the UNDP, the UN Global Compact, the Government of the United Kingdom, the Government of Australia, the Clinton Global Initiative and the International Business Leaders Forum will take forward and extend the reach of the Business Call to Action towards 2015. The BCtA tracks commitments companies make and lessons learned on what works well for both businesses and poor communities that can be replicated globally.