DEWA honoured at Unilever Sustainable Living Plan conference for its efforts in supporting sustainability
Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has been honoured at the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan conference. Maryam Althani, Senior Manager of Partnership at DEWA, received the award on behalf of HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA. A large number of officials from the government and private sectors and not-for-profit organisations attended the conference, which Unilever organised at Dubai Chamber.
Al Tayer emphasised that sustainability is an established value in DEWAs strategy, to achieve its vision to become a sustainable innovative world-class utility. Al Tayer lauded the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan in the Middle East and North Africa to reduce the environmental footprint, enhance positive social impact, improve the health and well-being of around billion people, improve the standards of living of hundreds of thousands of people, and reduce the companys environmental footprint by half by 2020.
I thank Unilever for honouring DEWA and commend its efforts to implement sustainability, which is a key driver for developing communities both socially and economically on the long run. This helps promote sustainable development to meet the needs of present generation without compromising the capabilities of future generations. DEWA contributes to the Emirates sustainability by implementing mega energy projects, enhancing the renewable and alternative energy, enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of energy and water networks, launching awareness initiatives and programmes to promote public awareness on the importance of the sensible use of natural resources, and instilling a culture of rationalisation in society. This in turn, supports Dubais strategy to reduce the carbon footprint of the Emirate and the UAE, contribute to mitigating the effects of global warming, and enhance the sustainable development of Dubai, said Al Tayer.
Sultan Al Zaabi, Project Manager of Conservation, Outreach and Engagement at DEWA, participated in a panel discussion at the conference on how effective partnerships can be in addressing the needs of the local community. Sanjif Kakkar, Unilever Executive Vice President, Laila Abdullatif, Deputy Director General of EWS-WWF, and Wafaa Ayesh, Director of Clinical Nutrition at Dubai Health Authority took part in the panel discussion.
DEWA launches awareness campaigns in collaboration with Unilever, as part of their partnership agreement. As per the agreement, Unilever organises a number of campaigns to promote the rational use of electricity and water and promote the use of water-saving products. DEWA trains Unilever salespeople on how to rationalise energy and water use, and pass this culture to their customers.
Initiated in 2012, the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan across the MENA set out its ambitious goals with the promise of improving the health and hygiene of 50 million people, reduce its environmental impact, while educating customers on water conservation, and developing projects that would improve the livelihood of thousands of people across MENA.
