Companies have a key role to play as “change agents” to build a world where gender equality is a reality to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 5. In pledging their support to take action, the Seven Principles of Women’s Empowerment - a joint initiative of UN Women and the UN Global Compact - will provide a set of considerations to assist PepsiCo Pakistan, Nestlé Pakistan and other companies focus on key elements integral to promoting gender equality in the workplace, marketplace and community, through policy and action.

Under the respective leadership of Furqan Ahmad (Vice President and General Manager for PepsiCo Pakistan and Afghanistan) and Bruno Olierhoek (Managing Director for Nestlé Pakistan), this move demonstrates their dedication to advance gender and diversity within the workplace and build a more inclusive environment for employees.

Jamshed Kazi (Country Representative for UN Women Pakistan) congratulated both PepsiCo Pakistan and Nestlé Pakistan in driving change from the top and galvanizing momentum to advance gender equality, diversity and inclusiveness. Speaking on the occasion, he said: “Amidst all the challenges and opportunities for businesses today, one fact is conclusive: companies with higher gender equality enjoy higher levels of growth and performance. Signing of the Women’s Empowerment Principles today is a testament of the work and commitment that PepsiCo Pakistan and Nestle Pakistan have undertaken, both global and local, to make their workplaces even more attractive for both women and men.”

Mr. Furqan Ahmed Syed stated “We are so proud to partner with UN Women on an important cause like women’s empowerment - because it’s the right thing to do. PepsiCo has been a corporate trailblazer when it comes to empowering women – inside and outside the workplace. This partnership is an opportunity for us to take our gender equality journey to even greater heights.”

Mr. Bruno Olierhoek commented “I commit that Nestlé Pakistan will aim to increase the number of women at managerial and senior level positions. Additionally, we will aim to train over 500 of our line managers on ‘Unconscious Bias’ by the end of 2018. So far we have trained 160 line managers. Lastly in order to create enabling conditions to ensure more women come back to work or take up work full-time, we are improving facilities like Day Cares and Women Hostels in our factories and other site.”

By signing the seven steps of the Women’s Empowerment Principles, PepsiCo Pakistan and Nestlé Pakistan take on a global approach to four key areas: promoting economic development through female entrepreneurship, championing gender diversity in business and corporate level, public-private partnerships for advancing women’s economic opportunities and providing potential business and investment opportunities through supplier diversity and marketing practices. To date, more than 20 Pakistani companies have made a public commitment of support over the last two years by signing onto the Women’s Empowerment Principles.

About PepsiCo Pakistan

Pepsi-Cola International Pvt. Ltd. – “PCI” was one of the first multinational companies to set up operations in Pakistan. Since commencing its beverage business in the country in 1967, it has grown to be one of the largest consumer goods producers in Pakistan and a market leader in refreshment beverages and snacks. The PCI System including its bottling partners and snacks portfolio directly employ over 15000 individuals while over a million are also indirectly associated with the business. The latter includes retailers, distributers, suppliers, transporters and farmers. With an increasing economic footprint, PCI plays an integral part in the economic growth and prosperity of the nation.

PCI’s beverage FOBO (Franchise Owned Business Operations) business operates through its valued bottling partners, which manufacture and sell high quality and leading PepsiCo beverage products such as Pepsi, Mountain Dew, 7 Up, Sting, Mirinda, Slice and Aquafina. PCI’s snacks COSO (Company Owned Snacks Operations) business, which was launched in Pakistan in 2006, now features globally renowned brands including Lays, Wavy, Cheetos, Kurkure and Quaker, which have established themselves as favorites with the Pakistan market. Pakistan is one of the few markets which have the distinction of exporting locally manufactured snacks to over six countries including Malaysia.

Since 1967, the PCI System has made significant investments in the form of a beverage concentrate plant in Hattar, beverage manufacturing plants nationwide and state-of-the-art snacks manufacturing facility at the Sundar Industrial Estate in Lahore. The Pakistan business ranks in the top ten global markets for PepsiCo.

About Nestlé Pakistan

Nestlé is the world’s largest food and beverage company. It is present in 189 countries around the world, and its 328,000 employees are committed to Nestlé’s purpose of enhancing quality of life and contributing to a healthier future. Nestlé offers a wide portfolio of products and services for people. Their ranges of 2000 brands include local favorites like Nestlé MILKPAK and Fruita Vitals. Company performance is driven by its Nutrition, Health and Wellness strategy. Nestlé is based in the Swiss town of Vevey where it was founded more than 150 years ago.

Story reproduced from UN Women website. Link to original article here.