Spokesman Report

ISLAMABAD: Nestlé Pakistan carried out a two-day training on ecotourism and sustainable waste management in Peshawar, under Travel Responsibly for Experiencing Ecotourism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (TREK) on the occasion of International Women’s Day.

Under the TREK initiative, over 130 public and private sector participants have been trained in Swat, Galyat and Chitral. The initiative has also engaged the local communities through training and awareness sessions on nutrition and hygiene for school children.

Women from hospitality industry, women’s chamber of commerce, non-profit, academia and other segments of the society actively participated in the training session. The two-day training comprised sessions on categorizing waste, the importance of recycling, learning to conduct waste audits, basic food safety and the importance of WASH compliance among others.

Speaking on the occasion, Tashfeen Haider Additional Secretary Tourism said, “We are glad that women are actively participating in community engagement activities, as training and awareness campaigns for tourists are coming to fruition.” He further said, “Department of Tourism’s collaboration through the TREK with Nestlé Pakistan and other stakeholders will strengthen the efforts to create livelihood opportunities for women and effectively address the issues faced by the tourism sector including waste management.”

Talking about the initiative, Waqar Ahmad, Head of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability, Nestlé in Pakistan and Afghanistan, said, “Our partnership with the government on TREK, will help realize our vision for shaping a waste-free future, by driving new behavior for a cleaner environment.”

“At Nestlé, our vision is that none of our packaging, including plastics, ends up in landfill or rivers. To achieve this, we have set ourselves the commitment of ensuring 100% of our packaging is reusable or recyclable by 2025,” he said, adding that active participation of women has shown wider social empowerment for the communities in the region.

Empowering women is a key part of Nestlé’s approach to enhancing diversity and inclusion. Apart from working to balance the gender makeup of our workforce, Nestlé is also working to change the economic, social and cultural outlook for women outside our operations through a host of different programs that aim to teach skills and improve livelihoods.

Kiran Afzal, Senior Private Sector Specialist, of the World Bank Group shared, “We are hopeful that this partnership will produce results on the ground by encouraging a responsible attitude towards destination management and respect for the ecosystem.”