In January this year, Nigerian Breweries Plc, one of the key players as a beverage company in the country, reiterated its firm commitment to supporting corporate social responsibility programmes. The statement was made through the National Trade Marketing Manager, Funso Ayeni. The company stated that it was in the bold bid to walk the talk on CSR that informed its decision to sponsor various musical concerts during the 2021 Yuletide celebrations.
Precisely, Ayeni expressly stated that: “We are thrilled to have been a part of bringing to life concerts around the country this December. A major part of our mission at Nigerian Breweries is to bring happiness to our customers all over the country and the sponsorship of these concerts line up perfectly with this vision.’’
Furthermore, he stated that, “as part of our sponsorships, Nigerian Breweries provided free drinks and played a crucial role in bringing several of these artistes to Lagos, and we are glad that through this sponsorship, Nigerians have been able to unwind and relieve the stress of the year.”
The questions that consumers of their prime products and that of other food processing companies ask is if bringing entertainment to the public is themain ingredient and focus of Corporate Social Responsibility ( CSR) programs? So, what is it all about?
According to www.investopedia.com Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a business model that helps a company be socially accountable to itself, its stakeholders, and the public. Some analysts on the economy view Corporate Social Responsibility as a management concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and interactions with their stakeholders.
In essence, corporate social responsibility is traditionally broken into four categories spanning environmental, philanthropic, ethical, and economic responsibility. It is in this regard that one takes a closer look at other initiatives of the NB Plc and assesses their impact and relevance to their immediate communities, consumers and the country at large.
It would be recalled that back in 2020, Nigerian Breweries Plc, instituted a new empowerment scheme, tagged “Partnership for Growth”. It is a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative,’’ geared towards equipping Nigerian youths, especially those in its host communities with vocational and life skills that create wealth and support livelihood.’’The theme of the programme is “Partnership for Growth: Invest, Involve, Inspire”.
To give life to its plan about 100 youths, made up of 50 males and 50 females drawn from Awo-Omamma Community, in Oru East Local Government Area of Imo State were selected by the community. They are to benefit from the maiden edition of the programme, which kicked off in August 2020.
Sequel to this, the beneficiaries were trained in different vocational skills ranging from confectionery, cosmetology, manicure and pedicure. Other areas of skills development include braiding, solar panel installation, landscaping, cell phone repairs, barbing, shoemaking to fashion designing. They were also taught basic bookkeeping, business management, customer service and life/soft skills.
“The scheme will create trust and strengthen the partnership between the company and the community where it operates,” said Sade Morgan, Corporate Affairs Director, NB Plc. According to her, NBPlc was embarking on the youth-based community intervention programme to address critical needs of stakeholders in the community.
She noted that: “Nigeria’s population has increased exponentially in recent years thereby putting overwhelming pressure on the limited and already overstretched economic opportunities. With about 70 percent youth population, the economic outlook of the country can be improved, by providing young people with entrepreneurial opportunities to acquire knowledge, vocational and life skills that create wealth and support livelihood.
“In the absence of the above, economic protest, community restiveness and crime could escalate.”
Good enough, she promised that NB would certify beneficiaries and support them with seed investment in tools of trade for the acquired skills.
It would be recalled that over the decades Nigerian Breweries has been a long time sponsor of youth empowerment programmes, under its “Youth Empowerment and Talent Development” agenda. The salutary aim is to provide a platform for young people to display, hone and get rewarded for their talents.
Some of the bold initiatives of the Youth Empowerment and Talent Development Programmes sponsored by NB include Creative Writer’s Workshop, which was organised in partnership with Farafina Trust and the National Arts Competition, organised for over ten years, by the African Artists Foundation. Others were the National Reading Competition, designed for SSS1-3 students in secondary schools across the country, to empower Nigerian youth and channel their energies to more productive ventures.
Not done, NB Plc embarked on Promoting Sustainability Through with the planting of 600,000 trees in Ogun state. It went ahead to sign an agreement with the Ogun State Ministry of Forestry for the reforestation of 500hectares of the Olokemeji Forest reserve in Abeokuta.
According to Mrs Sade Morgan, Corporate Affairs Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc, announced that the project will contribute 600,000 indigenous trees to the forest reserve once completed.
Under the project, Nigerian Breweries was expected to spend N500 million over the next 10 years to achieve this target. The International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) Ibadan was also announced as the implementation partner for the project, along with experts in the Ogun State Forestry Ministry.
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At that momentous occasion the Ogun State Commissioner forForestry, Engineer TunjiAkinosi expressed immense satisfaction and gratitude to the management of Nigerian Breweries Plc for contributing its quota to making the environment sustainable.
In her remarks at the signing ceremony, Mrs. Sade Morgan thanked the state government for its partnership and vision towards the preservation of the environment, which aligns with the company’s sustainability agenda, tagged Brewing a Better World (BaBW). She said: “Brewing a Better World (BaBW) is our long-term approach to creating shared sustainable value for all stakeholders, the society and the planet, not only by operating in a socially responsible and ethical manner but by playing an active role in building a sustainable future for our nation.
Going by the listed areas of engagement of the CSR of NB Plc it is patently evident that it has touched tellingly on the quality of life and wellbeing of Nigerians across the critical sectors of health, education, skills development, entertainment and environmental protection.
By the capacity to identify youth employment in this era of mass joblessness as well as encouraging tree planting as the world is faced with climate change with the attendant environmental degradation and fast spreading desertification the NB Plc deserves a big kudos.
The clear message has been passed across that the government cannot doit all alone in terms of food and job security as well as sound healthcare delivery. Many other corporate organisations should borrow a fresh leaf from these laudable initiatives and do the needful, when and where it matters most.
