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Tag: BAT

  • BAT Nigeria hosts multi-stakeholder workshop on sustainable water stewardship

    BAT Nigeria hosts multi-stakeholder workshop on sustainable water stewardship

    BAT Nigeria has convened a multi-stakeholder workshop at its Ibadan factory to address pressing water challenges and advance strategies for sustainable water stewardship.

    The event, themed “Collaborating for Sustainable Water Stewardship,” brought together government officials, industry leaders, and community representatives to explore collective solutions amid the growing global water crisis.

    Opening the forum, BAT West & Central Africa Operations Director, Hasnain Ishtiaq, stressed the need for joint action, saying, “This workshop is a testament to our firm belief that we can only make a real difference and build a sustainable future by working together, sharing ideas, and committing to collective action.”

    With the World Bank warning that over 40% of the global population lives in water-stressed regions, participants highlighted the urgency of adopting sustainable practices.

    Rising agricultural demands and climate change, experts noted, are set to intensify water scarcity, floods, and droughts.

    BAT’s Sustainability Operations Manager, Dr. Adesuyi Adeola, presented the company’s progress under the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) Standard, citing reductions in water withdrawal, improved recycling, and the success of its wastewater treatment plant, which recycled over 14,000 m of water in 2024.

    The company reaffirmed its commitment to transparency and accountability, stressing that the AWS framework goes beyond compliance by fostering community engagement and building trust with regulators, investors, and local communities.

    Read Also: BAT Nigeria mulls export reforms, showcases sustainability milestones at CEO Forum

    In an open dialogue session, participants raised concerns over public water infrastructure, while the Director of Water Resources at the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, Mrs. Bode Raji Olugbemiga, assured that government efforts were underway to repair facilities. She praised the workshop as a strong example of public-private collaboration.

    Stakeholders from the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), and the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) were among those in attendance.

    The workshop concluded with a call for attendees to serve as “ambassadors” for water stewardship, reinforcing the vision of clean and accessible water for all.

  • BAT Lawyers seek probe of police assault against member

    BAT Lawyers seek probe of police assault against member

    Some lawyers, under the aegis of Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Lawyers (BAT Lawyers), have urged the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Dr. Kayode Egbetokun, to investigate the alleged assault on one of their members, Mr. Ernest Okpaga, by some police officers attached to the National Cybercrime Centre (NCC).

    BAT Lawyers is a group of Nigerian legal practitioners that supports and expresses belief in the mandate, vision, and mission of President Tinubu, as encapsulated in the Renewed Hope Agenda for Nigerians.

    Addressing reporters yesterday in Ikeja, the lawyers alleged that Okpaga, an Abuja-based lawyer, was allegedly assaulted by some police officers attached to the NPF-NCC on December 19.

    The convener of the group, Mrs. Abibat Bankole-Apena, said BAT Lawyers had written a petition to the IGP and the Police Service Commission (PSC) over the incident.

    She urged the police authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident.

    According to her, the police officers beat Okpaga and dragged him on the floor after he resisted being locked up in a room with one of his clients, Ms. Thomas Abiodun, who had reportedly collapsed.

    Mrs. Bankole-Apena also alleged that the officers and men of NPF-NCCC concealed their identity by wearing mufti to work.

    This made it easy for them to unleash terror on Okpaga without any legal justification.

    The convener said an individual, identified simply as ASP Raliant, was the investigating police officer (IPO) in the matter.

    She said: “It is unfortunate that the actions of a few bad eggs in the Nigeria Police Force are soiling the good works of President Bola Tinubu and his lieutenants, like the Inspector General of Police, which she said is giving this government a bad image.

    “We believe that the IGP will take the matter seriously and act expeditiously in the overall interest of our country.

    “We also call on the police authorities to take steps to prevent such incidents in the future because we serve as part of change agents in providing the much-needed feedback to government. We are participants in the process of instituting good governance in Nigeria, which is a fundamental goal of Mr. President.”

    “We have called this press conference because we want to hold these men accountable and demonstrate that there are no sacred cows under this government. We believe that the IGP will take the matter seriously and act expeditiously in the overall interest of our country.”

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    BAT Lawyers also demanded that necessary disciplinary measures be meted out to those involved in the act to serve as a deterrent to others who might want to toe such a line of impunity.

    “Our member would have been beaten to death if not for the intervention of some other officers who were watching as he was being subjected to inhuman treatment.

    “Okpaga informed us that it was upon this intervention that they ceased beating him, and took him and his client to the police clinic where they were both treated.

    “We believe that the IGP will take the matter seriously and act expeditiously in the overall interest of our country,” Mrs. Bankole-Apena.

  • BAT MD advocates sustainable business practices

    BAT MD advocates sustainable business practices

    British American Tobacco (BAT) initiated the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Forum to address the need for sustainable and responsible practices in the manufacturing sector, its Managing Director, West and Central Africa, Yarub Al-Bahrani, has said.

    He gave the explanation at the maiden edition of the Private Sector ESG Forum hosted by BAT Nigeria in partnership with the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), and Nigerian Climate Innovation Centre (NCIC), in Lagos, last week.

    Other partnering organisations and companies for the forum aimed at promoting a sustainable future included Stanbic IBTC, Enactus Nigeria, Sterling One Foundation, International Breweries, Private Sector Advisory Group (PSAG) and Blue Echo Foundation.

    Al-Bahrani, in his opening remarks, said: “The vision behind the forum is to create a platform that connects industry players, bridges knowledge gaps, and promotes the adoption of sustainable business practice for inclusive growth and shared prosperity.”

    According to him, the forum was important because the private sector is a formidable force in shaping economies and societies.

    The BAT boss stated that the company has made a bold commitment to create ‘A Better Tomorrow’ by reducing the health impact of its business and delivering sustainable value for its stakeholders – the society, the people, and its consumers and shareholders.

     “Our ambition to create ‘A Better Tomorrow’ transcends mere rhetoric; it encapsulates our keen belief that we have a role, an obligation to be stewards of change.

    “This ambition has driven a profound shift in our corporate ethos, ensuring sustainability is not a random pursuit but is front and centre of everything we do and integral to every facet of our operations. It is this bold purpose that has given rise to the Private Sector ESG Forum,” Al-Bahrani added.

    KPMG Partner and Africa ESG Lead, Pieter Scholtz, in his keynote address, highlighted the need for organisations to incorporate financial reporting and other ESG strategies into their operations.

    In his words: “It has been proven that sustainability-linked products grow six times faster than others while companies that employ net zero emissions are seen to reduce their operating expenses.

    Read Also: Africa has innate potential to become major world’s economic bloc, says Oando

    “Also, lots of companies are now starting to gain productivity via ESG incorporation so the private sector has to take the aggressive lead seeing that there is no logic in not embracing ESG.”

    Announcing the private sector pledge at the forum, Director, External Affairs, BAT West and Central Africa, Odiri Erewa-Meggison, said the private sector has resolved to set up a Working Group as a measure to ensure that manufacturing companies operating in Nigeria embrace sustainable practices and implement actions to safeguard the environment and support their operating communities.

    She said the working group will be inaugurated in the first quarter of 2024. “BAT is proud to be part of this transformative journey, working hand in glove with our partners, co-organisers, and collaborators. We remain dedicated to being a catalyst for change and to continually advancing the cause of sustainability in the private sector,” Erewa-Meggison added.

    The forum had three expert panel discussions where renowned experts in the field of ESG led engaging panel discussions on topics focusing on reducing carbon emissions and building a resilient climate future; harnessing the opportunities for collaborative growth and reporting and transparency in ensuring accurate and transparent ESG performance.

    Panelists shared their experiences, best practices, and vision for a sustainable future. The panelists included CEO, Nigerian Climate Innovation Centre, Bankole Oloruntoba; Head, ESRM & Sustainability, UBA, Dr. Chidozie Uriel Ezike; Partner & Head, Enterprise Risk and ESG Services, KPMG Nigeria, Tomi Adepoju.

    Others were Director, Ghana Climate Innovation Centre (GCIC), Ruka Sanusi; Director, Corporate Affairs, Pernod Ricard, South Africa & Sub-Saharan Africa, Pamela Nkuna; and Managing Director, Precise Platforms Limited, Bolaji Okusaga, amongst others.

  • BAT @65: What they won’t tell him

    It has been a week of great songs and dances; a fitting celebration of a great man of our time as he turned 65. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT) has earned every encomium heaped on him and he deserves probably more in our dreary pantheon where statesmen are few and heroes are rare.

    To say a word of what has been said about BAT these few days would amount to torturing my readers; what is to be said here ought to be what has not been said. And that is: in the estimation of this column, BAT still has a helluva work to do to achieve and even surpass the philosophical and ideological prowess of the great Obafemi Awolowo; he still must plow the national reach of an MKO Abiola and the nationalist and pan-African stature of the great Zik and Madiba.

    Time is on BAT’s side, but the focus must be sharp to make those benchmarks.

  • BAT plans $47b Reynolds merger

    British American Tobacco(BAT) is planning to merge with its United States partner Reynolds in a deal valued at $47billion (£38billion).

    BAT wants to buy the 57.8 per cent of Reynolds it does not already own.

    The merger would bring together some of the tobacco industry’s best-known brands, including Lucky Strike, Rothmans, Dunhill and Camel cigarettes.

    BAT has been a shareholder in Reynolds since 2004 and the company said the merger was “the logical progression in our relationship”.

    The FTSE 100 company is offering $20billion in cash and $27billion in shares for the US business. This values Reynolds at $56.50 a share, compared to its closing price of $47.17 on Thursday.

    BAT estimates that it can make $400million worth of cost-savings through the merger.

    The company has not yet held talks with Reynolds and said the merger would have to be approved by all the US company’s independent directors.

    This is the biggest foreign deal by a British company in recent years, and flies in the face of the prevailing, post-Brexit wisdom that a weak pound would stop British companies buying foreign rivals.

    It also marks a substantial consolidation in the ranks of big tobacco – the kind of consolidation that has just happened in another of the “sin” industries with the merger of the world’s two largest brewers, AB InBev and SAB Miller. Analysts have for years thought there could be another big deal to being together the big players in world tobacco, and today it has finally arrived.

    There have been no talks between the companies in advance of this morning’s offer, but the pair know each other well – and after some haggling over price, it is likely we will see the creation of a new giant player in world tobacco.

    BAT has held a significant stake in the company for 12 years after merging its US operations, known as Brown & Williamson, with RJ Reynolds. A new parent company was established at the time, of which BAT owns a 42.2 per cent share.

    RJ Reynolds has been operating since 1875 and is the second largest tobacco company in the US after Altria, which owns Philip Morris USA.

    Last year, Reynolds completed its $25billion takeover of US rival Lorillard. The combined company was forced to sell off a number of brands, including Kool, Salem and Winston, to satisfy regulators. They were eventually bought by Britain’s Imperial Tobacco for $7.1billion.

    BAT also released results for the first nine months of the year on Friday which showed that revenue rose by 8.1per cent on a constant currency basis.

    The company said there would be an impact from the fall in sterling against the dollar and that trading remained “challenging” in a number of key markets. Shares in BAT rose nearly 3  per cent to £49.40 in early trading.

  • NUFBTE, BAT quarel over unionism

    The President, National Union of Food, Beverages and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE), Comrade Lateef Oyelekan, has urged the management of British American Tobacco, Nigeria (BAT) to comply with the rules and regulation of the union in order to avoid drastic measure being taken against the company.

    The union, an affiliate of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), is to propagate and protect general interests of the Nigerian workers in both public and private organisations.

    Oyelekan gave the advice after the aborted meeting with the management of BAT in Ibadan, Oyo State.

    He said efforts were made to reach agreement with the management of BAT on how to become a member of the union, where their officers would also be inaugurated, but they proved abortive.

    According to him, “It is in our constitution that any organisation

    with about 50 workforce must be unionized. BAT has over 1,000 workers and has been operating for more than 10 years.”

  • Obasanjo opens BAT’s head office

    Obasanjo opens BAT’s head office

    Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has described the commissioning of British American Tobacco Nigeria head office, which is located in Ikoyi, Lagos, as a major milestone and also a testament to government’s efforts geared towards attracting foreign direct investment (FDI). Tracing the return of BAT to Nigeria, which began with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the government and the company in 2001, Chief Obasanjo said that BAT was among the first companies that heeded his government’s invitation to invest in Nigeria.

    Praising the role of the private sector in economic development and jobs creation yesterday at the commissioning, Chief Obasanjo, who was the chief guest at the event, highlighted the important role that companies such as BAT play in the country. “Almost a decade and a half after the signing of the MOU, we are again at BAT to witness another milestone. I’m particularly delighted because this head office building showcases faith in Nigeria and BAT’s continued investment in Nigeria,” added Chief Obasanjo.