Firm earmarks €1million for youth, women empowerment

The parent company of the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) Ltd, Coca-Cola HBC, has announced a €1 million donation to support community empowerment and social impact programmes in Nigeria.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the brand, Zoran Bogdanovic, made the announcement at a stakeholder reception during his recent visit to Lagos.

According to the firm, the €1 million fund would be deployed to support four key initiatives including the Federal Government of Nigeria’s journey towards becoming Open Defecation Free (ODF) by 2025; up-skilling underserved youths and women in high demand skills and community recycling initiatives.

Speaking on the donation, Bogdanovic said: “This donation underlines our commitment to improving the lives of our communities. Through this support, among other ongoing sustainability initiatives, we hope to help drive growth for the Nigerian economy and enable better living conditions for local communities.

The donation will be directed towards empowering youth and women and the provision of water and sanitary facilities.”

He, however, noted that the partners for the fund were selected based on a rigorous, due diligence process and their track record, as well as their ability to deliver value and make impact in the communities.

“The remaining three partners will be announced soon,” he said.

On the company’s legacy in Nigeria over the last 70 years, Bogdanovic, said: “Our roots are in Nigeria and its spirit still runs right through our business today. This is why we have been a proud contributor to the growth of the Nigerian Economy throughout our history. In the last 10 years, we have invested well over a billion Euros in our Nigeria operations, which has supported the expansion of production capacity, building of modern warehouses, investment in eco-friendly logistics and above all, the creation of jobs for young Nigerians across the value chain. Today, we, along with The Coca-Cola Company, support over 58,000 jobs annually in the value chain in the country.”

Bogdanovic further said over the last 10 years, the Coca-Cola System has invested more than N9 billion in lifting the living standards of communities in Nigeria, through locally relevant initiatives. In addition, the company has scaled its gender diversity and inclusion targets, youth and women empowerment, water stewardship and its broader agenda for a World Without Waste.