Jaguar Land Rover boosts CSR through safe water project in Kenya

British automaker Jaguar Land Rover is furthering its work on global causes with a new water filtration project set to benefit 300,000 students in Africa.

For this five-year venture, Jaguar Land Rover is working with Climate Care and Vestergaard to install LifeStraw filtration systems in communities that feed into 375 schools in Bungoma County, Kenya. Launched in 2013, Jaguar Land Rover’s global CSR program has a goal of impacting 12 million individuals by 2020 through initiatives centered on education, technology, health, well-being and the environment.

Planning for the future
While this outreach may seem more focused on health or safety, it also impacts education, as students who become ill from dirty drinking water can miss significant amounts of school. This also impacts the long-term employment prospects for these students, allowing the project to make an impact long after the five years.

LifeStraw workers will visit the schools each term throughout the five years to ensure that its community water purifiers are being used properly and also to provide education.

At the launch of the initiative, seven Jaguar Land Rover employees visited schools to develop a better understanding of the cause and LifeStraw’s potential impact.

Jaguar Land Rover used its vehicles to support the distribution

Nigel Clarke, operations director of Jaguar Land Rover Sub-Saharan Africa, said in a statement, “As a responsible business which is pioneering new technologies and innovations to reduce the impact of our vehicles, it makes sense for us to invest in new technologies which are tackling other sustainability issues around the world. These ambitions are embedded into the core of our business. That’s why we have set ourselves an ambitious target to create opportunities for 12 million people globally by 2020. Through our support, we hope to inspire and create opportunities for our future consumers and employees.

"Africa is a key growth market for us," he continued. "By supporting the provision of appropriate and effective water purifier technology we are creating opportunities for over 300,000 school-children in western Kenya – giving them the opportunity for a better education and greater opportunity to learn and excel. By 2020, we will create opportunities for three million people in Africa, which will reaffirm our commitment to grow our global business sustainably and responsibly."

Since 2013, Jaguar Land Rover has undertaken projects in 11 different African nations, helping 1.9 million people so far.

Jaguar Land Rover's work in Africa is not limited to people.

British automaker Land Rover is continuing its support of wildlife charity Born Free through its partnership on a new lion enclosure and visitor center in Ensessakotteh, Ethiopia.

“The Tree House” has been remodeled to accommodate thousands of students each year, with classroom facilities that allow for interactive learning activities such as writing workshops and role-playing. By focusing on educating the next generation, Land Rover can help to make a difference in the conservation and treatment of lions (see story).