Page 12 - SABN AR 2021

Managing Director’s review
12
Annual Report 2021
This Annual Report provides an overview of the business activities of the SABN and the financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2021.
The context of this financial year is a once-in-a-century pandemic with COVID-19 sweeping across the globe. Our first priority remained the health and safety of our people. A business continuity plan was put in place with the strategic intent to protect staff, minimise the impact on the SABN’s operations and manage the supply chain to ensure the availability and quality of banknotes to contribute to the economic well-being of South Africans.
The business had to change established norms and introduce new ways of working. A Joint Operating Committee was put in place to set strategic direction in dealing with the practical aspects of COVID-19 and business continuity. Our people involved in critical operations continued operating at the SABN facility, and extensive measures and processes were put in place to help keep them safe. The rest of the staff members were requested to work from home. Furthermore, business travel was put on hold to protect our staff members.
In February 2021, the South African rand reached its 60- year anniversary. The SABN was honoured to produce
the first decimal banknote series for the SARB in 1961 and today South African banknotes are recognised as among the most secure internationally with innovative advances in design and technology.
The SABN made good progress in implementing its strategy and produced 974 million banknotes for the SARB for the financial year ended 31 March 2021 − a respectable delivery given the practical challenges presented by COVID-19. I would like to convey my appreciation to people on the frontline of our business who have kept the plant running to ensure the availability of banknotes for our stakeholder, the SARB, and ultimately the citizens of our country.
The EBITDA amounted to R153 million for the financial year ended 31 March 2021. The strong performance is pleasing given the practical challenges presented by COVID-19.
The SABN continued to focus on excelling in the fundamentals in our business processes, including quality management systems, manufacturing processes, asset management systems, data analytics and business information. As part of its long term strategic planning, the SABN developed strategic options for asset life cycle management and the asset master plan.
The SABN is a Level 1 accredited member of the Banknote Ethics Initiative (BnEI) Accreditation Council and complies with its Code of Ethical Business Practice. The BnEI was established to provide ethical business practices, with a focus on the prevention of corruption and on compliance with anti-corruption legislation within the banknote industry.
Further to the above, the SABN successfully completed recertification audits for:
> ISO 9001: Quality Management;
> ISO 45001: Health and Safety;
> ISO 14001: Environmental Management; and
> ISO 22301: Business Continuity Management.
The SABN has successfully transitioned from the OHSAS 18001 to the ISO 45001 standard for occupational health and safety.
The SABN contributes to skills development through the learnership programme for printers, artisans and technicians in order to grow the talent pipeline. The SABN has approximately 13 learners on the programme to build capability and provide learners with workplace experience to support their future employability.
South African Bank Note Company (RF) Proprietary Limited