Mukono District, Uganda – Coca-Cola Beverages Uganda (CCBU) announced a partnership with Umama Arise Uganda that seeks to empower women through upskilling and promoting environmental sustainability.

CCBU, is a subsidiary of Coca-Cola beverages Africa (CCBA), an industry leader that seeks to achieve positive change in the world and build a more sustainable future for our planet, will, through a UGX 20m donation, support Umama Arise Uganda to train at least 100 women in making briquettes and supply 30 solar dryers in five villages in Mukono and Buikwe districts.

Briquettes provide an eco-friendly way to utilise various types of waste materials, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and offer alternatives to biomass fuels.

Ms. Pearl Nimusiima, the CCBU Public Affairs and Communications Manager said at the handover in Mukono district “Our aim is to create greater shared opportunity for the business and the communities we serve across the value-chain. Opportunity is more than just money, it’s about a better future for people and their communities everywhere on the African continent.

“People matter. Our planet matters. We believe in doing business the right way by following our values and working toward solutions that benefit us all. Initiatives like making briquettes and using solar dryers, provides economic inclusion opportunities for women and youth and environmental sustainaibility through the collection, recycling and reuse of plastic waste.”

“The interconnected global challenges of packaging waste and climate change have made this a focus for our business and communities. The Coca-Cola Company and its bottling partners like CCBU are taking action on the packaging we use and how we can drive change.”

CCBU has committed to invest in our planet and our packaging, to help put an end to plastic waste, working in partnership with The Coca-Cola Company which launched a sustainable packaging initiative called World Without Waste in 2018. One of the key elements of our World Without Waste initiative is partnering with communities and organisations like Umama Arise Uganda, Nimusiima said.

Women will be trained on how to identify PET waste in areas where briquette raw materials are collected, how to sort it and turn it into cash.

The partnership is expected to contribute to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly approach to waste disposal, energy generation and increase incomes for rural women by providing them with new skills and income-generating opportunities.

“We are delighted to have a partner like Coca-Cola Beverages Uganda,” said [insert name], [insert title] at Umama Arise Uganda. “They have provided the resources to achieve our goal of mitigating climate change and empowering women through providing income-generating skills.”

”The solar dryers provided by CCBU will not only be used to dry the briquettes but will also help the women to dry and preserve the surplus food items that they harvest,” explained [insert surname].  

The project, which seeks to protect the environment and provide alternatives to traditional fuels such as firewood and charcoal, is expected to benefit women in the villages of Busiba and Kayanja, Namawojolo, Nagojje, Katuba, and Bwanika.

“CCBA has a responsibility to help solve the problem of global plastic waste, and we’re leveraging our scale and reach across markets to achieve our sustainability goals, reduce waste pollution and our carbon footprint,” Nimusiima concluded.

*Update* On December 2, 2024, The Coca-Cola Company announced updated voluntary environmental goals. Read more here: The Coca-Cola Company Evolves Voluntary Environmental Goals