Diageo, parent
company of Guinness Nigeria Plc has welcomed the release of the latest Producers’
Commitments report by the International Alliance for Responsible Drinking
(IARD), which shows signatory companies have stepped up implementation of their
commitments to contribute to the global target of reducing alcohol-related harm
by 10% by 2025.
Diageo is one of 12
leading producers of beer, wine, and spirits which are signatories of the
commitments to tackle alcohol-related harm.
This is the third
annual report following an agreement in 2012 for the alcohol industry to
collaborate, and the first since the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were
agreed by governments in 2015.
Diageo chief
executive Ivan Menezes said: “I am proud of Diageo’s significant contribution
towards the industry’s overall progress in reducing the harmful use of alcohol,
particularly our work to prevent underage drinking and ensure the next
generation has a positive relationship with alcohol. We are three years into
the most ambitious initiative our industry has ever collectively undertaken to
address harmful drinking and, while we have made good progress, there is still
more work to be done. At Diageo, we are committed to doing more.”
This year’s report
highlights particular progress in programmes to prevent underage drinking.
Collectively, the 12 signatory companies implemented 257 underage education
initiatives in 2015, a 49% increase on the previous year. These programs
directly engaged nearly 30 million unique adult influencers such as parents,
teachers, and community leaders on the importance of respecting legal age
limits on buying alcohol. Over 192 million additional individuals were reached
through education programs, mass media and social media campaigns.
Guinness Nigeria Plc
has launched various initiatives to promote the responsible use of alcohol in
society and as part of a balanced lifestyle. These include the DrinkiQ training
programme, age verification program launched last year, the yearly “Ember
Months” campaign which is done in conjunction with the FRSC. It would be
recalled that last year, Guinness Nigeria donated breathalyzers to the safety
corp to enable it check the incidence of drunk-driving on Nigerian roads. Other
initiatives include sponsorship of a radio programme, DRINK DIARIES, on Lagos
Traffic radio 96.1 FM as well as advertorials and out of home messaging aimed
at educating the general public on the dangers of drink-driving.
In 2015, IARD
members and industry organisations supported 345 drinking and driving
prevention programs. Diageo supported drinking and driving prevention
programmes in 39 countries last year, including its flagship #JoinThePact
programme.
Diageo says its
track record in drink driving programmes also led the United Nations Institute
for Training and Research (UNITAR) to select Diageo as a partner for a two-year
partnership entitled ‘Road Safety Initiative for Cities’ which aims to improve
road safety globally earlier this year. Scheduled to start in late 2016,
training will be run in 15 countries across Africa, Asia, Latin and Central
America, focusing on countries with the highest death rates related to road
traffic accidents, with over 60 countries invited to participate.
At the start of
2016, Diageo relaunched DRINKiQ.com, making the site available in 12 languages
across 25 countries, featuring enhanced alcohol content and nutritional
information for all its brands, including a breakdown of calories, carbohydrates
and protein as well as, for the first time, detailing saturated fat, sugar,
caffeine and sodium content.
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