Nairobi, Kenya, October 20 – Safaricom has received honorary recognition from the IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre (ICPAC) East African Climate Action Awards. The telco was recognised for having a strategic approach towards managing its environmental impacts.
The Awards shine a spotlight on people and organizations with groundbreaking innovations and ideas to mitigate the effects of climate change.
“Immediately after the submissions closed, the judging committee poured over dozens of submissions before arriving at the final winners. They were judged purely on merit as the adjudicators assessed, among other things, clarity of pitch, scalability, climate focus, impact on sustainable development, and innovation. Through their Carbon Trust initiative, Safaricom was recognised as one of the companies who are taking a strategic approach towards net zero”, said Linda Ogallo, Climate Change Adaptation Expert, ICPAC
According to its latest Sustainable Business report, Safaricom has registered its carbon reduction goals with the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) which independently assesses and approves companies’ targets in line with a strict range of target-setting resources and guidance.
“We are committed to becoming a net zero emitting company by 2050 through managing our operations responsibly, decreasing our environmental impact and partnering with our stakeholders to do the same. This recognition shows that our efforts, which include transitioning to the use of renewable energy sources and leveraging technology to provide clean energy, are starting to pay off”, said Peter Ndegwa, CEO, Safaricom.
In an effort to increase air quality awareness as part of climate action, Safaricom recently partnered with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) to launch digital billboards placed in four critical locations in Nairobi. The billboards are currently providing real-time air quality information for some of the most harmful types of air pollution that will assist with the issuance of health advisories as well as formulation of smart traffic controls that minimize congestion.
The company also intends to plant 5 million trees through a carbon offset tree growing initiative
which it estimates will offset 26% of its emissions. In partnership with M-Kopa Solar, Safaricom has also provided access to solar energy to over 800,000 households impacting 3.3 million lives and resulting in over 1.7 tonnes of avoided emissions.
