Coca-Cola has launched JAMII, an Africa-focused sustainability platform, to improve access to safe water and protect natural water resources. As part of the company’s 2030 Water Security Strategy, it aims to replenish 100% of the water it uses in its beverages by 2030. The Coca-Cola Foundation has launched four new projects that support water replenishment in strategic areas that supply South Africa’s water systems. The foundation has committed nearly $1m in grant funding to rehabilitate degraded landscapes, remove invasive alien plants, and improve local land management practices to return precious litres of water to nature. Previously, through the Replenish Africa Initiative ‘RAIN’, the foundation invested $65m in improving the lives of six million Africans across 41 countries. The JAMII projects have collectively rehabilitated and improved land management practices across more than 11,500 hectares, providing more than 155 jobs, including 82 women and 35 youth.
The four projects are unique, and the first partnership is with the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) South Africa in the Enkangala Drakensberg of Mpumalanga. The project supports the Integrated Vaal River System serving Gauteng by investing in improved land management upstream, and it will expand the existing protected area network in the Enkangala Drakensberg Strategic Water Source Area by 25,000 hectares. This will be accompanied by improved land management practices across 12,000 hectares in collaboration with two local community property associations (CPA) in Wakkerstroom and Donkerhoek.
The WWF works with CPAs in Southern Mpumalanga on a restoration project with the emphasis on water replenishment and skills development through fire management, rangeland management and job creation through the removal of alien invasive plants as well as protected area expansion. Mr Siphiwe Mnisi of Bambanani CPA is one beneficiary who received accredited training and equipment through a fire management project. He said that the training has been an eye-opener, and people are now organising their livestock according to the instructions from the training. Rotational grazing is being implemented, giving some camps time to rest.
Coca-Cola’s bottling partners are also committed to water restoration enterprises. Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa (CCBSA) initiated Coke Ville, off-grid solar-powered groundwater harvesting systems that pump, treat, store, and distribute clean water. Coke Ville launched in 2020 with three systems in Limpopo and has expanded to a total of 32 sites across the country, including Eastern Cape, Gauteng, and KwaZulu-Natal. Each project is designed to provide these communities with 10-20 million litres of water annually. To date, over 400 million litres have been distributed to over 25,000 households throughout the country.
Similarly, Coca-Cola Peninsula Beverages (CCPB) focuses on water conservation in its daily operation. Over the past 11 years, CCPB has reduced its water usage by 50%, and it was awarded a 5-star rating by the City of Cape Town for water preservation in 2019, which still holds true today. CCPB continues to deliver water to drought-stricken communities and is a regular initiator and participant in coastal clean-ups that aim to remove damaging litter from South African beaches and oceans.
Babongile Mandela, Public Affairs, Communications and Sustainability Director at Coca-Cola Africa, South Africa, said: “Water is essential to every person and every ecosystem in the world. It is also essential to the products we make and the agricultural ingredients we use.” By investing in water replenishment projects and focusing on water stewardship in its daily operations, Coca-Cola is helping to secure South Africa’s water future.
