|
|
|
You can get e-magazine links on WhatsApp. Click here
|
|
|
|
|
|
PepsiCo extends safe water access to 16 million people, including Indians
|
|
Thursday, 21 June, 2018, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
|
|
Purchase
|
PepsiCo has announced that it has extended access to safe water to nearly 16 million people in some of the world’s most water-stressed areas, including 10 million people in India, since it launched its Performance with Purpose vision in 2006. The company has invested over $40 million in safe water access solutions with strategic partners as a part of its goal to support a total of 25 million people with safe water access by 2025.
“At PepsiCo, we believe water is a fundamental human right and that access to safe water is one of the most urgent global challenges,” said Roberta Barbieri, vice-president, global sustainability, PepsiCo.
“Over the last decade, we have been focused on grassroots solutions to this challenge, as well as partnering with experts in communities around the world to support innovative, sustainable and local water solutions. Access to safe water is at the heart of PepsiCo’s global water strategy, in which we aim to enable long-term, sustainable water security for our business and others who depend on water availability,” he added.
As a result of the current water use habits, population growth and the effects of climate change, a staggering four billion people are affected by water scarcity, and by 2050, the global demand for water will increase by as much as 50 per cent. Two-thirds of the world’s population currently lives in areas that experience water scarcity for at least one month a year, and about half of those affected live in China and India.
To reach more individuals in need, the PepsiCo Foundation announced a $4.2 million grant to WaterAid, a leading international water and sanitation non-governmental organisation (NGO), to provide clean water access to communities in southern India facing extreme water shortages, specifically in Palakkad (Kerala), Nelamangala (Karnakata) and Sri City (Andhra Pradesh).
Water scarcity and sustainable management of water resources is a critical challenge that India is grappling with. This grant from the PepsiCo Foundation sought to implement solutions that will help increase access to clean water to over 2,00,000 people, build community and government capacity to manage water resources and educate community members to adopt sustainable sanitation and hygiene practices.
“Strong public-private partnerships drive scalable and lasting impact, and we are proud to work with PepsiCo to bring clean water to hundreds of thousands of people in need,” said Sarina Prabasi, United States chief executive officer, WaterAid, adding, “To improve access to clean water, it is essential that corporations step up and invest in collaborative action, just as PepsiCo is doing as a part of its leading Performance with Purpose agenda.”
In addition, the PepsiCo Foundation recently announced an additional $2 million donation to the China Women’s Development Foundation, an organisation PepsiCo has been working with since 2001. PepsiCo is the first Fortune 500 global corporation to participate in their flagship Water Cellars for Mothers initiative, which provides safe and effective solutions to improve water access in areas with no water infrastructure.
The new investment sought to provide access to safe water to over 10 million people by 2025 by improving environmental conditions near the Danjiangkou Water Reservoir, where small water sources are often contaminated. The programme has become an important supplement to the Chinese government’s safe water access project and a role model for philanthropic collaboration between the government, businesses and NGOs.
As a part of its signature platform, Performance with Purpose, PepsiCo helps communities effectively conserve, manage and distribute water across the United States, Latin America, China and India with a portfolio of partners including Safe Water Network, Water.org, WaterAid, China Women's Development Foundation, the Inter-American Development Bank, the Nature Conservancy and the 2030 Water Resources Group.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|