By Dauda Abbas
Nestlé Nigeria annually provides 14 million litres of potable water to host communities as part of its corporate social responsibility programme in Ogun State and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Ms. Victoria Uwadoka, Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Manager at Nestlé Nigeria, made this announcement during the virtual opening of the 2023 edition of the Advancing Health, Nutrition, and Environmental Awareness Programme on Tuesday, June 20, 2023.
The programme is a collaboration between Nestlé Nigeria and the Lagos Business School (LBS) Sustainability Centre.
Uwadoka emphasized that the organization recognized the importance of giving back to the communities surrounding its facilities. Over the course of three years, they have constructed 16 new Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) facilities to promote access to water and hygiene for the host communities.
She further explained that Nestlé Nigeria aims to make a positive impact on individuals, families, communities, and the environment through shared value and collaboration.
Uwadoka highlighted the organization’s efforts to enable healthier and happier families by providing tastier and healthier choices, inspiring people to lead healthier lives, and promoting health and nutrition through food fortification in Nigeria.
She stated, “We are helping communities develop thriving, resilient systems to enhance livelihoods, increase household income, and support responsible local sourcing of products. This has led to a legitimate demand and steady source of local produce from farmers, resulting in an increase in household income, with 98 percent of women and 82 percent of men testifying to its impact.”
Furthermore, Uwadoka mentioned that Nestlé Nigeria is implementing sustainability awareness programmes to promote environmental protection, focusing on end producers’ and consumers’ responsibility. This initiative involves partnering with waste recycling companies to ensure proper disposal of plastics.
Uwadoka stressed the importance of collective responsibility among all stakeholders. She called upon the media to play a more significant role in educating the public on social and behavioral change to foster sustainability awareness and environmental protection.
Earlier in the event, Ms. Theresa Akpoveso, Programme Manager at the LBS Sustainability Centre, expressed that the media serves as society’s window to the world.
The programme’s objective is to equip print, broadcast, and online journalists with fundamental knowledge and trends on Shared Value/Sustainability, Nutrition, Health, and the Environment. They will also develop skills for creating compelling stories, video content, and podcasts, using solution-based storytelling techniques related to environmental issues, health, and nutrition to engage readers, listeners, and audiences.
The programme’s content will revolve around themes such as Solutions Journalism, Nutrition, Health, Environmental Protection, Climate Change, and how these topics apply to business, agriculture, and society as a whole. This provides journalists with an opportunity to understand how these issues manifest in the corporate environment, agriculture sector, and impact people in general.
Ms. Oreva Atanya, representing the LBS Sustainability Centre, discussed Corporate Sustainability and Shared Value and its implications for sustainable development. She emphasized that every individual has a responsibility to ensure sustainability in all aspects of society.
Atanya identified challenges related to climate change, environmental pollution, and food insecurity as having significant impacts on a nation’s sustainable development.
She stated, “Society must always adopt a sustainability mindset in all endeavors, and the media can utilize solutions journalism to address sustainability issues.”