Coca-Cola Beverages Africa Uganda will once again participate in the annual Kabaka Birthday Run through its brand, Rwenzori Natural Mineral Water.
Coca-Cola Uganda confirmed participation with a cheque handover of Sh50 million, the equivalent of about 3000 cartons of Rwenzori Natural Mineral Water, at the Buganda Kingdom headquarters in Bulange, Mengo, this morning.
Handing over the contribution to positive social change within communities in Uganda, Miriam Limo, the Coca-Cola Brand Manager for Uganda said the company was committed to improving Uganda through its regular business operations and partnering for causes like the Kabaka Birthday Run which has a humanitarian angle of creating awareness for the sickle cell disease, among others.
“It is a pleasure to be here today as we once again handover our sponsorship package to the Birthday Run which this time round is dubbed Jubileo, symbolizing the 25 years since the Coronation of the King. Our relationship with the prestigious Kabaka Birthday Run dates back five years. This is mainly because of the value that we attach to this run and to the thousands of Ugandans who have benefitted from the different causes over the years,” said Ms. Limo.
She emphasized that Rwenzori Water was an appropriate flagship brand for the Kabaka Birthday Run because of its hydrating and refreshing qualities required by every participant, and its acceptance across the country regardless of faith or culture.
“Our heritage in Uganda is not just pegged to being a symbol of refreshing hydration; it also includes decades of humanitarian causes either initiated or sponsored by us. It is therefore natural for Rwenzori Natural Mineral Water to be part of the Kabaka Birthday Run – which brings together people from different nationalities, with different beliefs and speaking different languages, all for one common goal – to give back and improve the lives of the less privileged in our communities,” Ms. Limo added.
On her part, Maureen Kyomuhendo, the Public Affairs and Communications Manager, Coca-Cola Beverages Africa Uganda, advised the runners to ensure that during and after the run, they discard the plastic bottles carefully to enable recycling at Plastic Recycling Industries (PRI), another subsidiary of the Coca-Cola Beverages Africa Group.
“PRI is one way we give back to the Community by removing used plastics from the environment, therefore limiting environmental hazards; We recycle these plastics and export plastic flakes, thus bringing in foreign exchange, and also provide a raw material for increased local manufacturing – which creates employment,” Ms. Kyomuhendo said.
PRI will deploy plastic collection points along the route in order to limit wrongful disposal of used plastic water bottles by the thousands of people who will be participating.
And Ms. Kyomuhendo said that PRI`s goal is to collect and recycle more plastics than the quantity put onto the market by Coca-Cola Beverages Africa affiliates, the Century Bottling Company and Rwenzori Bottling Company.
“We are aggressively disseminating the message of plastic collection at every opportunity, and at every event. If all Ugandans join hands in limiting environmental damage by collecting plastics for recycling, we shall then have an even bigger positive impact in Uganda. The Kabaka Birthday Run is giving us another opportunity to demonstrate this even as we run together for other causes,” she added.
Katikkiro Charles Peter Mayiga, who received the contribution on behalf of the Kabaka, commended Coca-Cola for the gesture and noted that the company has been supportive to the Kingdom even in other ventures.
