An idea that sparked while Delanie Bezuidenhout was admitted to hospital about 9 years ago, came alive and has now brought smiles and dignity to over 300 000 learners.
It has also reclaimed over 163 tons of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) drip bags that otherwise would have been thrown away as medical waste.
The My Walk Made with Soul is a non-profit initiative between Bezuidenhout, hospital group Netcare and pharmaceutical company, Adcock Ingram, that manufactures and distributes school shoes made from reclaimed and non-hazardous medical waste like uncontaminated drip bags, oxygen masks and tubing collected from participating Netcare hospitals in Gauteng and Kwa-Zulu Natal.
After starting as a trial project in 2016, the initiative manufactured its first pair of shoes in January 2020 and officially launched a month later in the same year.
With experience in the plastic industry and sustainability matters, the fully recyclable school shoes presented an opportunity for Bezuidenhout to address a social issue that affects millions of children while also creating sustainable jobs.
“We started playing around with some ideas in terms of what could be made from the material and as a group, we decided on school shoes. We knew that there were more than a million children in South Africa that have no school shoes and another 5 million odd that do not have shoes that really fit,” she says.
Made with custom machines, each pair of school shoes is made from 20 IV bags and takes under a minute to complete.
Bezuidenhout explains that while the shoes come at no cost for the learners, individuals and institutions that want to donate can purchase a pair for R35.
The donors have an option to either distribute the shoes or allow the My Walk Made with Soul initiative to distribute them to the deserving schools.
Qualifying quintile one and two schools are selected with the assistance of the Department of Basic Education (DBE).
These are no-fee paying schools that are mostly found in underserved, low-income communities that often have families who cannot afford to buy new school shoes for their children.
Why plastic?
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) reports that plastic pollution poses a challenge to the environment and the growing production of plastic has resulted in the increase of plastic waste which is expected to triple by 2060 if nothing is done to regulate the industry.
In August 2025, 180 countries gathered at the UNEP’s Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) in Geneva, where talks for a global plastic treaty ended in a stalemate.
At the centre of the negotiations was the formulation of a legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including the marine environment.
The treaty aims to cover the entire life cycle of plastic including its production, design, use, reuse and recycling.
My Walk Made with Soul does its part by helping reduce the amount of medical waste at landfills while embracing the circular economy with its green solution that goes beyond creating employment and supporting the education of children from low-income communities.
“We work very closely with the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment (DFFE) to ensure that what we do is done safely, and that it benefits the environment and society,” Bezuidenhout added.
Steady hands
Chairperson of the My Walk Made with Soul Board and Netcare’s Group Director of Human Resources and Transformation, Dr Nceba Ndzwayiba says both the CEO of Netcare, Dr Richard Friedland, and the managing director of Adcock Ingram Critical Care, Colin Sheen, dedicated their efforts towards the initiative, providing “steady hands that are focused on changing lives.”
With the 1 million school shoes goal on the horizon, each donation is a gift of dignity and a chance for a brighter future for the learners.
“It is about creating the conditions to nurture the next generation’s potential for achieving inclusive economic growth for our country with sustainable solutions that improve access to life changing opportunities,” Ndzwayiba said.
One of Netcare’s environmental sustainability goals is to achieve net zero emissions by 2030 and this includes emphasising the achievement of zero waste to landfill, alongside a 20% reduction in freshwater utilisation. Over 16% has already been realised since 2022.
“What My Walk Made with Soul has demonstrated to business is that when we unite to find creative ways to address the needs of young people, we can transform waste into opportunity, building lasting social impact alongside environmental sustainability,” he added.
Bezuidenhout is inviting donors to join the intersectional movement that stands for environmental innovation, social justice, and economic upliftment.“Every donation to My Walk Made with Soul helps us manufacture and deliver more shoes. It helps us expand our reach, improve our recycling efforts, and deepen our impact,” Bezuidenhout explained.