Source: Daily Observer
The vice president of the Republic and Women's Affairs minister, Her Excellency Aja Dr. Isatou Njie-Saidy, was Wednesday morning briefed about the activities of Coca Cola Company, including the bottling firm's global project of empowering five million women entrepreneurs by the year 2020.

This was disclosed to reporters by the new country manager of Gambega Gambia limited, a subsidiary of Coca Cola Company, who held talks with the state's No.2 at State House in Banjul.

Known as '5by20', the project is Coca Cola's global commitment to enable the economic empowerment of five million women entrepreneurs by 2020. It will specifically focus on the small businesses. The Company works in over 200 countries around the world.

From fruit farmers to artisans, the '5by20' initiative aims to help women overcome the barriers they face to business success, and to accomplish this, the Company would provide access to training, financial resources and mentors.

Speaking about this project shortly after his audience with Dr. Njie-Saidy, Eugene Allen, a Sierra Leonean-born business executive, said they plan to promote the scheme this year.

Allen, who replaced Adolfo Marti Llacer last August, also told journalists that his Company is planning to improve its business operations in the country, targeting to scale up growth from 2 percent last year to 5 percent. This target, he explained, will be achieved through the Company's current plan to add a new Fanta Apple brand to their already existing 12 products. "We also discussed about our plans for 2014 and how we can expand our business in The Gambia," he said.

While thanking The Gambia government through VP Njie-Saidy for all the support rendered to the bottling Company, Allen assured of their commitment to consolidating gains by maintaining it as the country's No.1 bottling firm. The Gambega Company

Gambega is a subsidiary of the Equatorial Coca-Cola Bottling Company (ECCB) and the authorised bottler in The Gambia. It began bottling operations in 1995 and has since become one of the leading manufacturers of beverages in the country. Among its bottled soft drinks are coke, Fanta orange, pineapple, blackcurrant, fruit cocktail and strawberry.

 

• Gambia