Coca-cola empowers two million women across Africa

Coca-Cola, through 5by20 Initiative, has enabled the economic empowerment of more than two million women entrepreneurs across Africa.

Celebrating International Women’s Month, the Coca-cola company and its partners said the goal of the 5by20 initiative has been exceeded as the company has enabled the economic empowerment of more than six million women around the world, of which 34 per cent, representing over 2 million of those women enabled by the 5by20 program live and do business in Africa.

“This International Women’s Day, we celebrate surpassing our goal to reach five million women, but we know that there is still work to be done,” says Patricia Obozuwa, Vice-President: Public Affairs, Communication, and Sustainability Coca-Cola Africa.

“Women entrepreneurs continue to face major hurdles hindering their successes, and we acknowledge that our work must therefore continue, particularly given the significant socio-economic disruption created by the pandemic in so many communities around the world,” Obozuwa said.

5by20 aimed to assist women entrepreneurs across the Coca-Cola value chain – agricultural producers, suppliers, distributors, retailers, recyclers, and artisans – overcome challenges when establishing and growing their business. By providing access to business skills, financial services, assets and support networks of peers and mentors, women entrepreneurs are enabled to overcome social and economic barriers and succeed as entrepreneurs, while also helping create sustainable communities.

The Coca-Cola Foundation has funded the 5by20 initiatives, and the Coca-Cola system has worked with several partners to implement over 300 programs in 100 countries to provide women entrepreneurs with business skills training, mentoring networks, financial services and other assets to help enhance their businesses and lives as well as provide more for their families.

Over the last 10 years, the company has worked with countless partners who helped bring aspirations to life. Partnerships with organisations such as UN Women, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Women Enterprise Fund (WEF), Department for International Development (DFID), USAID, International Finance Corporation (IFC) MercyCorps, TechnoServe, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Hand in Hand Southern Africa, and several other regional and local partners were critical to the success of the 5by20 program.

In Nigeria, in partnership with the UK Department for International Development Girls Education, we launched the Educating Nigerian Girls in Nigeria Enterprise(ENGINE) value program, which aimed to strengthen the educational and economic opportunities of the Nigerian girl-child. Nearly 21,000 young girls and women benefitted from this program and many more over the last 10 years. At the end of 2020, nearly 500,000 Nigerian women were empowered through the initiative.

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Coca-cola empowers two million women across Africa