P&G received one of two awards at the ceremony. One presented to a multinational, and the other presented to ‘small to medium-sized enterprises’ (SME’s).
In her opening statement at the award presentation ceremony, Hilary Clinton, the US Secretary of State said, “We are honoring these two companies because they have had an exceptional impact in giving back to the communities where they do business. They are setting the highest standards for corporate social responsibility. They are showing the world that it is indeed possible to do well by doing good”.
P&G was nominated by the US Embassy in Nigeria as well as Pakistan for this award and was shortlisted in November 2011 amongst 11 companies globally. P&G is the first company to win for programs in two countries i.e. Nigeria and Pakistan.
According to US State Department, P&G Nigeria was recognized for the company’s corporate and brand CSR program under the ‘Live, Learn and Thrive’ platform, to improve local communities’ water supply through education and purification technology; provision for a safe and healthy working environment; supporting the health and well-being of new and expectant mothers and children through mobile clinics; and innovative educational programs for teenage girls.
While talking to the audience at the ceremony, Bob McDonald said, “P&G’s Purpose as a Company is to touch and improve lives, now and for generations to come. Our Purpose guides and inspires everything we do. For 175 years our Purpose has focused us on finding ways to make people’s everyday lives a little better. We improve lives with our brands, with our business growth, with our employee programs and with our social responsibility efforts. When we improve lives, we grow our business and by growing our business we are able to improve even more lives. It is a virtuous cycle and entirely congruent.”
Manoj Kumar, the Managing Director for P&G West Africa joined the ceremony virtually from the US Consulate in Lagos. “P&G Nigeria is honored and humbled by this award that is focused on improving lives” said Kumar. ‘This is the core of our purpose as a company and we are very fortunate to work with strong partners who share this vision – our distributors, agencies, suppliers and non-profit organizations such as Sponsor a Child, Society for Family Health and Adolescent Health and Information Projects (AHIP). Together, these organizations have implemented and are indeed still delivering truly excellent work that brings our purpose to life everyday in Nigeria.”
Since its establishment in Nigeria in 1992, P&G has invested millions of dollars in fixed capital including a Plant in Ibadan, Oyo State where its products Pampers diapers, Ariel detergent, Always sanitary pads, Vicks throat drops and Bonux Detergent are manufactured. Making up over 85% of P&G products sold in Nigeria, these brands have grown to become leading household names in Nigeria.
P&G employs about 3000 people directly and indirectly with Nigerians making up over 95% of its managers locally and some on international assignments. The company has created over 200 new successful entrepreneurs with sustained training and marketing support in rural and semi-urban areas over the past 5 years. P&G is expanding across West Africa with Nigeria as its central business hub the entire region.
P&G’s social responsibility program called Live, Learn and Thrive (LLT) focuses on the development of children of ages 0-13. With its ‘Always Care program’ Procter and Gamble provides feminine hygiene and puberty education to over 700,000 Nigerian girls every year. The company’s Pampers Baby Care Hospital Program and Mobile Clinics, touch the lives of 1.5 million young Nigerian mothers and their babies annually. ‘Building Futures’ program, a collaboration between P&G and non-profit organization ‘Sponsor a Child’ donates P&G products; Pampers diapers, Ariel detergent and PUR purifier of water purifier as well as providing learning facilities to orphanages across Nigeria. Procter and Gamble collaborates with non-profit organization, Society for Family Health on the ‘Safe Water for Nigerian Children’ program which has provided millions of litres of safe drinking water in Nigeria and the company’s Pampers/UNICEF program has provided over 7.5 million tetanus vaccines to mothers and their babies in Nigeria.
P&G has gained significant recognition in Nigeria. Over the past year, the company won the prestigious SERA award for Best Company in Child-Focused CSR 2011, Best Company in Corporate Social Responsibility 2011 awarded by Institute of Brand Management of Nigeria and the Conglomerate Employer of Choice 2011 award by Multi-Talent Heritage.
About Procter & Gamble
P&G touches and improves the lives of about 4.4 billion people around the world with its portfolio of trusted, quality brands. The Company's leadership brands include Pampers®, Tide®, Ariel®, Always®, Whisper®, Pantene®, Mach3®, Bounty®, Dawn®, Fairy®, Gain®, Pringles®, Charmin®, Downy®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Oral-B®, Duracell®, Olay®, Head & Shoulders®, Wella®, Gillette®, Braun®, Fusion®, Ace®, Febreze®, and Ambi Pur®. With operations in about 80 countries, P&G brands are available in more than 180 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands
About ACE Awards
The Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE), established by the State Department in 1999, recognizes the important role U.S. businesses play abroad as good corporate citizens. The Award sends a strong signal of the Department’s commitment to further corporate social responsibility, innovation, exemplary practices, and democratic values worldwide. The ACE helps define America as a positive force in the world. It highlights our increasing outreach to the business community, our public-private partnerships, and public diplomacy efforts. The ACE recognizes the contributions business makes to improving lives at home and abroad.
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