UNICEF and Unilever today [Tuesday], March 22, announced a partnership to improve access to safe water in countries across sub-Saharan Africa. The partnership will focus first on four countries namely Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.
The new agreement includes financial investment as well as strategic engagement with government and civil society. It aims to implement innovative community and school-based programmes to promote sustainable management of safe water and also to improve hygiene and handwashing practices.
“The business case for greater investment in safe drinking water is clear,” said Manuel Fontaine, UNICEF’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa. “Just looking at the impact of safe water and positive hygiene practices on child health and nutrition, it’s easy to see how this is an investment that can hugely improve and save the lives of children – and there is no greater return on investment than that.”
Bruno Witvoet, President Unilever Africa, said: “At Unilever we want our brands to make a difference to the lives of the people of Africa, but the scale of challenges such as providing safe water go far beyond what any organisation, public or private can do alone. This partnership will draw on the joint expertise, resources and networks of both UNICEF and Unilever, to magnify our efforts so we improve the quality of life for ordinary people and help Africa meet the Sustainable Development Goals.”
In Kenya, one-in-three people lack access to safe drinking water, while in Nigeria at least 150,000 children below five years of age die every year as a result of diarrhea, and 70 million people lack access to improved water sources.
In Côte d’Ivoire, 90% of schools and health care centres lack access to improved water supplies. In Ghana, over two million people use water from unsafe sources.
Despite unfavorable conditions, the potential to improve the situation for children is real. Due to the achievements realized through the Millennium Development Goals, an additional 47,000 people in sub-Saharan Africa now have access to safe drinking water every day, an increase of 20% compared to 25 years ago.
The Unilever-UNICEF partnership seeks to demonstrate scalable water management models that deliver results and drives further investment in this critical area for the continent.
UNICEF and Unilever began collaborating in 2012 under a global partnership to address the sanitation crisis.
About UNICEF
UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do. Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere.
About Unilever
Unilever is one of the world’s leading suppliers of Food, Home and Personal Care products with sales in over 190 countries and reaching 2 billion consumers a day.
It has 169,000 employees and generated sales of €53.3 billion in 2015. Over half (58%) of the company’s footprint is in developing and emerging markets. Unilever has more than 400 brands found in homes around the world, including Persil, Dove, Knorr, Domestos, Hellmann’s, Lipton, Wall’s, PG Tips, Ben & Jerry’s, Marmite, Magnum and Lynx.
Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan (USLP) commits to:
•Decoupling growth from environmental impact.
•Helping more than a billion people take action to improve their health and well-being.
•Enhancing the livelihoods of millions of people by 2020.
Unilever was ranked number one in its sector in the 2015 Dow Jones Sustainability Index.
In the FTSE4Good Index, it achieved the highest environmental score of 5. It led the list of Global Corporate Sustainability Leaders in the 2015 GlobeScan/ SustainAbility annual survey for the fifth year running, and in 2015 was ranked the most sustainable food and beverage company in Oxfam’s Behind the Brands Scorecard.
Unilever has been named in LinkedIn’s Top 3 most sought-after employers across all sectors.
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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana