Vodacom is investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy, reducing waste and wastefulness, reducing its water footprint and implementing eco-friendly solutions at the core of its operations.
In South Africa, the main environmental issues have been described as water pollution, air pollution, land degradation, solid waste pollution and deforestation. The main concern with environmental damage effects is that it goes beyond negatively affecting people’s health to also harming the species that live in the environment, while also contributing to the worldwide issue of climate change.
Vodacom has reduced its Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions by 135 510tCO2e (metric tonnes of carbon dioxide), as a result of investments in energy reduction and mitigation of its impact on climate change.
In addition, since 2018, Vodacom has reduced its office paper consumption by 11%, reduced its employees’ business travel in rental cars by 24% and business flights are down by 34% in an effort to use technological interfaces and adopt smarter ways of working.
In response to the water shortages experienced in South Africa, Vodacom has over the years invested in water-wise practices resulting in a 19% reduction in water consumption within its office buildings.
Themba Kinana, managing executive for Vodacom Corporate Affairs, says: “We’re working tirelessly to achieve these results and ensure that we remain committed to connecting our customers for a better future in a sustainable manner. At Vodacom, we view sustainability thinking and practice as an integral part of our business journey.
“Our vision is to grow our business in the most sustainable way and to help improve the resilience of our network, industry, communities and individuals that we have an impact on. These actions are complimented by our commitment to the UN SDG Goal 13: Climate Action – which aims to explore even more renewable energy and green technology solutions, to protect the environment across our operating markets.”
Today (5 June) is World Environment Day. It was first established in 1972 during the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment and aims to encourage worldwide awareness and action for the protection of the environment.