FMN Joins African Business Leaders’ Coalition to Fight Climate Change Impacts in Africa

Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc (FMN), owner of the iconic brand, Golden Penny, and a notable player within the FMCG industry, has expressed commitment to sustainable development and has taken deliberate measures to entrench local content utilisation across its business operations.

According to the management of the company, FMN as an industry leader in driving sustainable development through local content utilisation in Nigeria recently became the first FMCG company in Nigeria to join the Africa Business Leaders Coalition (ABLC), a coalition committed to sustainable development and ambitious climate action through alignment of holistic perspectives from African business executives and Board chairs into the global conversation on climate change.

The coalition comprises Chief Executive Officers and Chairpersons of 55 African companies from a diverse range of sectors, representing more than $150 billion in revenue and over 900 000 employees across 50 African countries, convened at the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP27 on November 19, 2022, in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, with the support of the UN Global Compact.

The company said FMN, which is an organisation that has been sustainably feeding the country for over six decades, is aware of the climate emergency and its disproportionate impact on agricultural systems and food security on the African continent, “and the need for more action from all stakeholders to solve the climate change impacts.

“Also, as a responsible corporation with a significant footprint in the food and agro-allied value chain, the group believes that the private sector has a critical role to play in addressing climate change impacts. FMN is therefore committed to building more sustainable and resilient agricultural systems to reduce the adverse impact of climate change on food security.”

As part of this commitment, the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of FMN, Mr. Boye Olusanya, joined fellow business leaders from the continent at the African Business Coalition Session and the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) to unveil the African Business Leaders’ Climate Statement at the Climate Conference (CoP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

According to him, the Climate Statement highlighted key commitments by the ABLC to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, supporting Africa’s recent transition towards a 1.5oC future to build a thriving continent rooted in a resilient, green, and competitive economy with opportunities for Africa’s youths and future generations. 

He said: “The Statement also calls on all partners, public and private, to substantially ramp up their support, action, and engagement in Africa through the coalition and meet existing commitment to resourcing and financing in the spirit of climate justice and equity.”

Speaking on the group’s consistent leadership in driving sustainability across its business value chain, Olusanya stated that: “For over six decades, FMN has been at the forefront of driving sustainable development and continues to make significant investments toward local content development. It is a key strategic imperative for the group that we collaborate with relevant stakeholders and partners to drive our sustainability efforts in Nigeria and across the African continent; and it is on this mandate that FMN became the first FMCG company in Nigeria to join the African Business Leaders Coalition, (ABLC) to fight climate change impacts on the African continent.”

For FMN, membership of the ABLC is significant because climate action is critical to addressing the key issues facing the African continent such as food insecurity, water scarcity, and displacement of lives and livelihoods, which have been worsened by climate impacts, hence an integrated, consistent, and collaborative approach is required from relevant stakeholders to manage the risks and opportunities associated with climate change.

He stated further that the ABLC presents a viable platform to elevate the voice of African private sector and bring African perspectives to global conversations on climate change and pathways to a just transition.