Coca-Cola pumps millions into water

The Coca-Cola Company has committed $30million (£21m) to provide access to safe drinking water for communities throughout Africa.

The funding, spread over the next six years, will be allocated through the company’s Replenish Africa Initiative (Rain) and implemented by the Coca-Cola Africa Foundation. The company aims to provide at least two million Africans with clean water and sanitation by 2015.

The World Health Organization says more than 300 million Africans lack access to safe drinking water, and millions die every year from preventable water-borne illnesses.

Water also poses a reputational risk for Coca-Cola, as the company is frequently accused of causing shortages through its bottling plants, most recently in India (EP9, issue 9, p8).

The soft drinks multinational has had an established presence in Africa for many years, setting up first in South Africa in 1928. It now operates in all of the continent’s 56 countries and territories – and the Coca-Cola Foundation already has water projects reaching 300,000 people in 19 African countries.