Communities

Background

The issues

SABMiller has its roots in Africa – where 315 million people survive on less than a dollar a day.  Eighty percent of our worldwide earnings come from emerging markets, where low incomes are the norm.  This year, two of our fastest-growing regions were Africa and Latin America which saw lager volumes increasing on an organic basis by 13% and 8% respectively. 

Given this presence in developing countries, we have a good insight into the challenges facing consumers, workers and communities, and we are acutely conscious of our role in supporting economic development to help alleviate poverty.

At SABMiller, we believe the greatest contribution business can make to society is to generate inclusive growth – growing a successful, profitable business by building value chains that create jobs, drive economic growth and improve social development while using scarce natural resources efficiently.

Businesses need healthy and prosperous communities, because they offer the opportunity for profitable growth. They enable companies to grow markets, promote new product development and improve productivity. In contrast, when local economies undergo economic hardship and contract, businesses are also impacted, reducing the ability of these businesses to provide employment and support suppliers.

Why this is a priority

The prosperity of our business is closely aligned to the health and well-being of the communities in which we work. We recognise that our investment in communities will bring benefits in terms of our reputation, the commitment and advocacy of our employees, and the loyalty of our consumers.

Our local businesses are part of the communities in which they operate. Our employees are usually local people that live in nearby communities and so our relationship with them goes beyond their time at work. The investment we make in our facilities is an investment in local communities, as we are able to provide jobs and boost local businesses through the sale and distribution of our products and corporate social investment activities.