The two-day hybrid ASIS event held from Wednesday July 13 to Thursday July 142022, at Transcorp Hilton in Abuja.

The blended event attracted likeminded executives and partners focused on advancing inclusive growth on the continent as it provided a platform for dialogue on regional inclusive development aimed at stimulating private sector and impact investors to shape market-led solutions for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with a focus on climate solutions, health, agriculture, renewable energy, WASH and circular economy.

The sponsors expressed optimism that the summit would help fashion out functional frameworks for the private sector and impact investors to boost Africa’s regional comprehensive development on the principles of the SDGs 2030.

In her keynote address at the event, Patricia Obozuwa, the Vice President, Public Affairs, Communications and Sustainability, Africa, The Coca-Cola Company, highlighted the company’s continued focus on creating a better shared future for the communities that are home to its world-class beverages through acceleration of on-the-ground impact of its initiatives and interventions, leveraging the collaborative investments from its philanthropic arm, The Coca-Cola Foundation, and from other partners.

She said, “Earlier this year, we launched ‘JAMII’, our Africa sustainability platform which houses our existing and new sustainability initiatives. ‘JAMII’ embodies the true spirit of ‘community’ and continues to expand on our past accomplishments with key focus on three areas: water stewardship, economic empowerment of women and youth, and waste management. While we continue to drive achievement of the SDGs through our signature programs under JAMII, there remains a need to scale our efforts significantly leveraging collective action and impact hence the summit objective.

According to her, the whole world stands to benefit by keeping faith with the SDGs however Africa’s special disposition makes her specific needs dire, which is why Coca-Cola has refocused with the launch of JAMII to enhance the impact of its social investments in Africa.

“To achieve success, there is an urgent need for effective and coordinated partnerships and collaboration as Africa has the potential to be at the heart of a sustainable future for both the continent and the world. I assure you of our continued commitment at The Coca-Cola Company as we remain key contributors in driving the 2030 agenda”.

Abubakar Suleiman, Chief Executive Officer, Sterling Bank, welcomed the zeal for a new approach to attaining the SDGs in the African continent and expressed optimism that the firework of ideas would translate to action for reducing poverty, which he noted was the main goal of the ASIS.

According to Suleiman, “this Summit presents a good opportunity for Sterling Bank and other partners to start intensifying efforts”.

The Summit brought together stakeholders from across the African continent and provided a platform for the analysis of several historical records on sustainable development with a view to stimulating a marked shift in the general understanding of the word ‘development,’ in the context of human development as against mere economic growth.

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With a goal to attract like-minded partners who would help accelerate the impact of its initiatives on ground, the platform houses the company’s new and existing sustainability initiatives.

It targets building and expanding on past achievements in three areas; water stewardship, economic empowerment of women and youth, and waste management. This will be delivered together with bottling partners, system employees and various NGO partners.

“We recognise the responsibility we have as market leaders to make a significant difference: to empower and protect the communities and the environment in which we operate. Whether it’s providing people with access to safe drinking water, creating economic opportunities for those in desperate need, or reducing the impact of our operations on the environment, we are committed to making a difference,” said Bruno Pietracci, Africa president, Coca-Cola Company.

Patricia Obozuwa, vice president of Public Affairs, Communications and Sustainability of AOU added; “We chose the name JAMII, a Swahili word that means community, society, people, because it represents who we are as Africans and is aligned with our values ​​as an organisation: our resilience, our commitment and our community spirit. Consolidating our sustainability efforts under this umbrella will allow us to strengthen our value proposition and fulfill our promise to continue to be a reliable partner for sustainable growth in Africa.”

In the area of ​​economic empowerment of women and youth, JAMII will promote and stimulate entrepreneurship opportunities through the provision of better access to training, networks, finance and markets. To date, more than 2 million women in Africa have received financial assistance as part of the 5by20 programme.

“In the area of ​​water management, we will replace 100% of the water used in the production of our products by efficiently managing the use of water in our operations, supporting the conservation of natural water resources and improving community access to water and adaptation to climate change.” 

So far, the combined efforts of Coca-Cola Africa, the Coca-Cola Foundation and its partners have resulted in sustainable access to safe drinking water for more than 6 million people through the Replenish Africa Initiative (RAIN).

Speaking on waste management, Coca-Cola Africa is committed to promoting a world without waste. Almost all Coca-Cola packaging is already recyclable with the goal of recycling the equivalent of 100% of its packaging waste by 2030.

Obozuwa added that; “Coca-Cola Africa is already forming new partnerships to facilitate the implementation of JAMII projects that will meet these goals.”

Internally, JAMII will inspire employees to make a difference in their immediate communities. Employee-nominated charities will receive grants and employee volunteerism will be encouraged. Additionally, The Coca-Cola Employee Disaster Relief Fund will support employees facing financial difficulties as a result of a natural disaster.

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