Nigeria and other developing countries are to benefit from a partnership between the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and brewing giant, Heineken, on addressing some sustainability-related challenges.
The partnership, which covers three areas: water, renewable energy/efficiency and local sourcing of inputs, is aimed at promoting inclusive growth and enhancing the environmental impact of Heineken’s operations in developing countries.
According to experts, the world is expected to require 40 per cent more water and 50 per cent more energy by 2030. Population growth, changing lifestyles and climate change will place increasing pressure on the environment, particularly on water, energy and food nexus. And one sector that touches all three areas is the brewing industry.
A statement on UNIDO’s website, accessed by The Nation, noted that under the water component, the partnership focuses on developing initiatives for catchment areas classified as ‘water-scarce’. The initiatives complement Heineken’s commitment to reducing water consumption in its breweries in these regions. Currently, joint activities are concentrating on breweries in Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Mexico and Nigeria.
The programme started in 2015 with UNIDO and Heineken organising two-community engagement workshops on the future of local watersheds: one in Ethiopia for the Dabena river catchment area; and the other in Nigeria for the Ibadan region in the Ogun-Oshun catchment area.
Measures identified by stakeholders to reduce water stress in the Dabena catchment area include the reforestation of degraded upstream catchment areas, the promotion of sustainable land use and agro-forestry practices, and the establishment of community-based water retention facilities.
This initiative also draws on support from Israel, which is well-known for its extensive experience in water conservation, technology and innovative practices. More workshops are planned for 2016 and 2017.
Under the second pillar of the partnership, UNIDO and Heineken are jointly examining the potential of renewable energy sources to enable Heineken’s developing country brewing plants to reduce fossil-fuel dependency as well as to supply excess clean energy back to local communities, through either power purchase agreements or the construction of local mini-grids.
This work is being piloted at Heineken’s brewery located in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
In addition, the parties will look at ways to improve the industrial energy performance of Heineken’s Sedibeng Brewery, located near Johannesburg, South Africa. This will contribute to reducing power demand on the national grid, which is a high priority area for the South African government.
At the same time, this work will reduce the carbon footprint of Heineken’s production operations in line with the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy.
Finally, under the local sourcing component, the partnership is exploring opportunities to expand Heineken’s Supplier Development Programme as part of the company’s commitment to source 60 per cent of its raw materials in Africa locally.
Heineken sources locally in 11 operating companies across Africa, through 24 various sourcing initiatives, involving over 120,000 farmers and reaching approximately 840,000 family members.
The UNIDO-Heinekenpartnership is an exciting new area of work for UNIDO and in the words of the UNIDO’s Director -General, LI Yong, “Ultimately, we want to improve the lives of people in developing countries and make a meaningful contribution to inclusive and sustainable development while, at the same time, create flourishing markets that foster business opportunities.”
The Chief Corporate Relations Officer of Heineken, Blanca Juti, said: “Partnering UNIDO helps us deliver on our commitment to Brew a Better World, which is at the core of our mission as a company.”
