By Francis Zyder
In Summary
- Starting 2017, Isuzu EA committed to donate Ksh 1,000 from every vehicle it sold to the Fund
- Isuzu East Africa is the leading motor vehicle assembler in East Africa, selling a wide range of Isuzu vehicles. The company is starting out from a solid foundation established by the Isuzu brand’s automotive excellence over the last 40 years
- Palmhouse Foundation is a local Education Trust whose mission is to finance the secondary education of needy and deserving students and mentor them through life
- The foundation is the first indigenous Kenyan education trust of its kind and was started by respected business leader Eric Kimani and his wife Margaret.
- The organization is now in its 15th year of operation and has supported hundreds of beneficiaries through their secondary education
- Isuzu EA has committed to purchase copies of Eric’s book at a price of Ksh 1,000 and then gift a copy to each customer for every sale of a new vehicle.
Leading bus and truck assembler Isuzu East Africa (Isuzu EA) has announced a partnership deal with local education Trust, Palmhouse Foundation to help meet its ambitious goal of establishing a Ksh 100 million Endowment Fund. Starting in 2017, Isuzu EA committed to donate Ksh 1,000 from every vehicle it sold to the Fund. The Endowment Fund will support Palmhouse Foundation’s work of financing the secondary education of needy and deserving students from Kenya’s 47 counties.
The announcement was made during the launch of a book, ‘Wisdom for Abundant Living’, authored by Palmhouse Founding Trustee Eric Kimani. The event was held in front of the Kenya National Library Services (KNLS) iconic new building located at the Community Area, Nairobi. Speaking at the book launch, Rita Kavashe, Isuzu EA’s Managing Director, explained her company’s shared values with Palmhouse Foundation through its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program.
“Through our CSR initiatives we have for many years supported the wellbeing of communities through Healthcare, Road safety, Education, and Environment. Under Education, we have made annual donations to Palmhouse since 2006, and seen over 50 bright and needy children complete high school, then proceed to local Universities. We’ve also provided internship opportunities and full-time employment to some of these beneficiaries,” she said.
Rita lauded Palmhouse for being the first indigenous Kenyan education Trust to support hundreds of young beneficiaries complete their secondary education. She also described Kimani’s book as offering life transforming nuggets of wisdom.
“Setting up a Fund that will continue educating under privileged Kenyans long after the founders are gone is indeed a noble undertaking by Palmhouse. I commend Eric Kimani for demonstrating a genuine commitment to changing lives, a vision that is well explained in his book. Our customers will be happy to know that when they buy an Isuzu, they are supporting this Fund. I call upon other corporates to come on board and support this initiative,” Rita concluded.
Palmhouse Founding Trustee Eric Kimani thanked Isuzu EA for supporting the Foundation over the years. He explained that the Ksh 100 million Endowment Fund would support bright and needy students achieve their dreams.
“I really appreciate Isuzu EA and other corporates who have heeded our call. Through their support, we have successfully financed the secondary education of over 700 students, transforming their lives. Once we reach the Ksh 100 Million target through book sales and other fundraising initiatives, the Endowment Fund is expected to earn a conservative interest of Ksh 12 million every year. This is enough to finance the education of hundreds of children,” explained Kimani.
To support the Fund, Isuzu EA has committed to purchase copies of Eric’s book at a price of Ksh 1,000 and then gift a copy to each customer for every sale of a new vehicle. The company has projected to sell at least 4,000 units by the end of the year, which will result in a donation of Ksh 4 million towards the Fund.
