How Unilever is Harnessing Purpose for Business, Societal Good

Unilever Nigeria is a century in Nigeria this year. This makes it the longest serving-manufacturing organisation in the country. Unilever has therefore restated its committed to utilising its business as a force for good. Its goal is to generate positive outcomes for both the environment and society. The company is currently implementing various initiatives to minimize its ecological footprint, enhance the well-being of consumers, and foster a more diverse and inclusive work environment. By prioritizing sustainability, health, hygiene and inclusion, Unilever Nigeria is actively contributing to a brighter future for the planet and its inhabitants, writes Oluchi Chibuzor

In today’s interconnected world, businesses have the unique opportunity and responsibility to drive positive change. There are pressing societal challenges that only the innovative acumen of businesses can hope to relieve. This is precisely why business and purpose is the new mantra to drive change, engender transformation and ensure sustainability.

Business and purpose go beyond financial success. It emphasizes the need for companies to actively contribute to solving societal issues such as poverty, epidemic outbreaks, illiteracy, unemployment, and more. Businesses that price sustainability appreciate the need to embrace and indeed embed purpose in their business model.

The Unilever Compass

One company that seems to be ahead of the curve with its strategy of business and purpose is Unilever. Through its Compass commitments that drive its sustainability strategy, it has demonstrated that merging business with purpose is possible.

Unilever today presents a compelling case for embracing the idea of business as a force for good. Its operation highlights the benefits of pursuing both profit and purpose. The Unilever Compass is the group’s strategy to implement its business and purpose agenda through innovation. The Compass is founded on three core pillars: Brands with Purpose Grow; Companies with Purpose Last; and People with Purpose Thrive. Building on these pillars, the Compass has three commitments: Improve the health of the planet; Improve people’s health, confidence, and well-being; and Contribute to a fairer, more socially inclusive world. The three commitments are subdivided into eight commitments and 32 further commitments.  

In Nigeria, these commitments are localized and tracked year on year and reported in the annual sustainability report. 

Tackling Climate Change

Unilever’s urgency to tackle climate change, reduce plastic waste and protect nature has never been greater than it is today. Specifically, it aims to reach net zero emissions by 2039. To achieve this, it is transitioning to renewable energy across its operations, finding new low-carbon ingredients and expanding its plant-based product range.

Unilever Nigeria has embarked on a multifaceted decarbonization journey to reduce emissions from its operations and products. The company is transitioning to renewable energy sources at its various plants to reduce CO2 emissions on site. 

To efficiently manage emissions data, the company has implemented measures such as metering all utility usage points and providing training to technical operators responsible for handling environmental data. In 2022, it achieved significant progress in energy savings, with 14,461 GJ saved and CO2 emissions were reduced by 1,257,746.67 kg. 

Waste-Free World

Unilever’s commitment to plastic solutions by 2025 is in three stages: to cut the use of virgin plastic by 50 per cent; to collect more plastics than the company puts out in the environment; and achieve 100 per cent reusable, recyclable and compostable plastics across its operations by 2025.

In line with this commitment, Unilever Nigeria has been in partnership with Wecyclers since 2014. The partnership has effectively created sustainable collection mechanisms that have led to consistent growth. Over the years Wecyclers has championed its kiosk collection model, accounting for over 5,000 tons of recyclables being diverted from oceans and landfills. Also, it contributed to the growth of the Unilever franchise model, which has accounted for an additional 4,000 tons of recyclables collected and the creation of new jobs. 

In a demonstration of its resolve to provide more opportunities for plastic waste to wealth, Unilever Nigeria and impact investor Bridges Fund have signed a 2-million-dollar funding agreement with social Wecyclers to expand plastics recycling in Nigeria. It is a new and highly innovative finance mechanism called a “Development Impact Bond” arranged with the French investment bank Societe Generale. This will create thousands more jobs turning the plastics waste that commonly ends up on the streets into raw material for industry.

Improve People’s Health, Confidence and Wellbeing 

This compass commitment in Nigeria aims to improve people’s health, confidence, and well-being through actions related to reducing salt intake and improving food diversity.

Unilever aims to help people reduce their salt intake. To achieve this, it strives for 85 per cent of its food portfolio to ensure that consumers do not consume more than 5g of salt per day. This is being driven through the “Eat for Good” campaign. The target of reaching 25 million consumers with the message was exceeded, as 28 million consumers were reached by the end of 2022. Additionally, the company launched 100 per cent natural bouillon cubes in the Knorr portfolio to cater to the needs of consumers seeking healthier alternatives.

To improve food diversity and encourage the incorporation of vegetables into staple dishes, several initiatives have been undertaken. These include teaching consumers how to make top dishes healthier through recipe inspirations, activating the top dish jollof with diverse and healthy recipes, and conducting low-cost wet sampling initiatives to offer healthy meals to low-income earners. The targets include influencing a shift in behaviour towards consuming more diverse and nutritious meals and reaching 1 million adults with the Knorr Eativist Campaign.

Pepsodent Brush Day, Night School Programme

The Pepsodent Brush Day and Night School Programme aim to promote good oral hygiene among children and adults in Nigeria. In commemoration of World Oral Health Day in 2022, Pepsodent reached 952,275 children in primary schools with free oral health education and products, including toothpaste and toothbrushes. Since the programme’s inception over seven years, Pepsodent has educated over 6 million children in Nigeria on the importance of brushing daily with free products and oral kits to encourage the habit.

Pepsodent continues to promote good oral hygiene in Nigeria through various initiatives such as school programmes, mobile dental clinics, oral health education conferences, and consumer engagement through digital and traditional media. 

Contribution to Socially Inclusive World

Unilever Nigeria is committed to creating a socially inclusive workplace and promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion. The company aims to have five per cent of its workforce comprised persons with disabilities (PWDs) by 2030, starting with a one per cent target in 2022. To achieve this, the firm partnered with associations and non-profits advocating for the inclusion of PWDs and established an employee support network called “Enable” for colleagues with disabilities.

It has implemented the Africa Disability Pathway programme to build the capability of its employees to work with PWDs and made accessibility enhancements on its sites. Unilever Nigeria also encouraged self-declaration of disability status on the HR management platform.

Pioneering New Work Models

Unilever is pioneering new models to provide employees with flexible employment options by 2030. It plans to increase the FLEX platform’s usage, allowing employees to have flexible job experiences and acquire skills from other Unilever companies without changing their physical location. The FLEX platform has seen a total of 51 per cent registered users, with 40 per cent actively engaging with the platform. The organisation is committed to increasing FLEX opportunities and roles created and filled in Nigeria by 10 per cent in 2022.

Additionally, Unilever focuses on reskilling or upskilling their employees with future-fit skills by 2025. The goal is to have 80 per cent of employees with a future fit plan, which identifies relevant future career skills. The firm provides vocational training for shopfloor employees, emphasizing entrepreneurial skills, and offers capability building in e-commerce for the sales team. The target is to achieve a 20 per cent increase in learning through the degree platform.

 The concept of business as a force for good benefits society as a whole, fosters long-term success, enhances brand reputation and ensures sustainability. Unilever, with its Compass strategy and unwavering commitment to sustainable practices and achieving key targets, exemplifies its dedication to building a brighter future for the planet, its customers, and its employees.

The firm is harnessing the power of its people, brands and partnerships to help tackle the most pressing issues and make sustainable living commonplace. 

Unilever Nigeria Plc is a publicly listed company with trading and manufacturing interest in the consumer goods market. In 2014, it was listed among the top 20 most valuable companies quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.