Clean water, decent toilets and hand-washing facilities are vital for business success, and often drive a steep return on investment, according to WaterAid’s latest research, “Boosting Business: Why Investing in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Pays Off.”
The new research also highlights water necessities and its impact on tea estate workers and production.
According to WaterAid, water and sanitation – at home, in the community and at work – are foundations for health and wellbeing. By investing in them, companies – including tea estates – can foster a host of socio-economic benefits for employees and their families, boosting productivity, reducing sickness and absenteeism, and cutting medical and sick pay costs, according to the new research. Businesses can also strengthen their brand value, build resilience in their workforce and reduce supply chain and climate risks.
The first-of-its-kind pilot project and research was carried out between 2018 and 2022 in collaboration with Diageo, Twinings and ekaterra (which was part of Unilever when this project started), Gap Inc. and HSBC. The project and research took place in 10 workplaces and communities across four countries and sectors.
Tea estates that participated in the project included: Nagrifarm tea estate and Barnesbeg tea estate, based in Darjeeling, India, and Limuru tea estate operated by ekaterra (formerly Unilever), based in Kiambu County, Kenya. Non tea-estate participants included ready-made garment factories and other agricultural farms.
Each project documented the effect investment in water, sanitation and hygiene had on productivity, absenteeism, attrition, punctuality and the number of medical incidents at each workplace, with the reports including projections for the next 10 years.
Some of the key findings from the report include:
- Absenteeism decreased across the projects and the general health of employees, and their families improved. Absenteeism dropped 29 percent at the leather tanneries in India and 21 percent on the tea estate study in Kenya, thanks to the intervention.
- Workplace medical incidents dropped – the clinics on the tea estates in India saw a five percent drop and the tea estate in Kenya saw a 22 percent decrease.
- Productivity increased – the tea estates in India saw a 27 percent boost in productivity after the intervention.
- Punctuality increased five percent at the ready-made garment factories in Bangladesh and six percent at the leather tanneries in India.
The research showed that overall, for every $1 spent, the combined apparel sector factories (ready-made garment and leather) delivered a $1.32 return on investment, while the tea sector projects combined saw a $2.05 return.
WaterAid’s research also showed that the best results were where investments in the workplace and supply chains were supported by interventions in the wider community where employees’ live.
- On the Darjeeling tea estates in India where access to clean water was prioritized, 74 percent of households had a water source close by (less than 50m away) at the end of the project, compared to 55 percent at the start.
- In Bangladesh, community investment ensured 26 percent of households had safely managed toilets compared with zero percent at the start of the project.
- In Kenya, there was a 37 percent increase in the proportion of tea pickers washing their hands, and they washed them more often – nearly doubling from 2.8 times a day to 5.3 times a day at the end of the project.
Water Is a Basic Human Right
Céline Gilart, head of social impact and sustainability at Twinings, said, “Access to water and sanitation is a basic human right that is also critical to the realization of all human rights. However, this is still a challenge in many regions. Indeed, in Darjeeling, access to water remains problematic, due to the mountainous terrain, a lack of appropriate infrastructure and the rising population on tea gardens.”
Gilart continued, “At Twinings, we have been working on accelerating access to water and sanitation in our supply chain since 2010, so that people living in the tea gardens we source from have decent living standards and can contribute positively to their communities. We hope that this business case, by demonstrating benefits from a business and human perspective, as well as practical steps, will inspire and encourage others within the tea sector to do the same.”
Sylvia den Ten, general manager, ekaterra Tea estates, said, “Wellbeing of communities, particularly those working on our tea estates, is a top priority for us. We are pleased to observe the immediate outcomes of WaterAid's pilot project at our tea estates in Limuru, Kenya. This confirms the relevance of our investments to improve the livelihoods of thousands of women and men working at our tea estates.”
Tim Wainwright, chief executive at WaterAid, explained, “Investing in such a basic thing as water and toilets can no longer be overlooked by business leaders. The findings from this pioneering project make the case that it’s a necessity for businesses to put the heath of millions of workers at the core of their business strategies."
WaterAid works to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone, everywhere within a generation. The international not-for-profit organization works in 28 countries to change the lives of the poorest and most marginalized people. Since 1981, WaterAid has reached 28 million people with clean water and nearly 29 million people with decent toilets. To find out more, visit WaterAid.org/boosting-business.
To learn more about the WaterAid organization, visit WaterAid.org.
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