Whilst initiating and implementing these actions, we have remained committed to the values of our Charter and our Safety and Sustainable Development Policy and we have not deviated from our belief in the compelling business case for sustainable development. Safety, in particular, continues to be a major priority for the Company. Our stance towards safety remains uncompromising and we have continued to focus on aiming to eliminate fatalities, injuries and unsafe behaviour. Loss of life is our single greatest concern and I regret to report the deaths of three of our employees at our operations in 2009. During the year, we slightly improved our lost time injury frequency rate (LTIFR) to 6.21, but this fell short of our target to improve this rate by 15% in the year. Going forward we are targeting a further improvement of our LTIFR by 10% by 2010.
In 2009, we completed a major restructuring programme, which led to around 7,000 full time employees and contractors leaving the business. We implemented employee assistance programmes and portable skills training to reduce the impact of the restructuring on affected employees. The restructuring process has impacted on our progress towards increasing the number of Historically Disadvantaged South Africans (HDSA) and female employees in the Company. Nevertheless, in 2009, 41.3% of management comprised HDSA and female employees and this exceeds our target of 40%. Due to the reduction in the availability of financial resources, we will not achieve our targets to construct 5,500 houses and undertake 85 hostel conversions by 2011 and are engaging with relevant stakeholders on revised targets. We continue to exceed our targets of total discretionary spend with HDSA suppliers, which in 2009 amounted to 66.6%.
In 2009, we have continued with the implementation of our HIV/AIDS programmes, including early diagnosis and intervention, education and effective treatment through our wellness and anti-retroviral treatment (ART) programmes. In 2009 our number of new Noise Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL) cases have reduced substantially by 80.9%, and as one of the most significant occupational health risks faced by our employees and contractors, we continuously strive to reduce noise exposure. We are nearing the completion of the rollout phase of silencing 4,000 rock drills.
In common with the rest of the mining industry, our key environmental challenges include the access to and management of water and energy resources in an efficient and responsible manner as well minimising closure costs and environmental risks through integrated environmental management and closure planning. We remain committed to our targets to improving our resource use efficiency by integrating efficiency considerations into our business and planning strategies, improving efficiency at current operations and investigating alternative energy and water sources.
We remain dedicated to empowering our host communities and improving their quality of life by contributing to their long term social, economic and institutional development. US$5.7 million was spent in 2009 on community development projects, of which US$3.2 million was on local economic development projects as per our approved Social and Labour Plans.
As a member of the International Council for Mining and Metals (ICMM) we fully support its goal of establishing a global sustainability benchmark for the mining industry and are committed to implementing their principles through the Sustainable Development Framework. Furthermore, as a member of the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) we support their principles and initiatives and strive towards our commitments in the areas of human rights, labour practices, environmental management and anti-corruption.
We realise that our performance is of interest to a diverse range of stakeholders. We are dedicated to publicly reporting a balanced review of our approach and performance on our broader economic, social and environmental risks to enable our stakeholders to obtain an objective overall assessment of our achievements. Our reporting for financial year ending September 2009 comprises both a Sustainable Development Review as a component of the Annual Report as well as a web-based version which provides a more comprehensive coverage of sustainable development in the Company. The contents of the reports have been largely defined by risks facing the Company and interests and expectations of our stakeholders.
This report has been prepared using the guidance of the Global Reporting Initiative’s 2006 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines (GRI) and the Mining and Metals Sector Supplement. External assurance supports the integrity of our report content and has been provided by KPMG over selected parameters, reporting principles as well as on progress made against the requirements of the ICMM Sustainable Development framework. We declare that this report is aligned with the GRI B+ application level.
Ian Farmer
Chief Executive Officer