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Safaricom Sustainability Report 2016
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By putting the customer first, the new strategy has flipped
this around. We are now focused on finding out what our
customers actually require and then creating solutions to
meet their specific needs. This more focused approach has
required us to restructure internally during the year and,
in particular, to become less centralised. We now have six
regions and we have devolved many of our operations
into these regions, which we believe will get us closer to our
customers and able to serve them better.
Corruption remains a significant obstacle
One of the single biggest obstacles to our long-term
sustainability and shared prosperity remains corruption. It
is disappointing that selfish, short-term enrichment at the
expense of our people and resources remains the norm, but
I am heartened by some of the hard-won progress we are
making within the business community.
Every year, we forge closer ties and partnerships with
likeminded companies in the private sector and it was
rewarding to be part of the coalition that helped draft the
Anti-Bribery Bill, which we hope Parliament will soon pass into
law. It was also pleasing to note the enthusiastic response
to the Anti-Corruption Conference we co-hosted with the
UN Global Compact Network Kenya (GCNK) in December
2015. Over 400 delegates came together, representing a
cross-section of the public and private sectors and civil
society, and renewed their commitments to helping tackle
this challenge.
High ethical standards for suppliers
As part of our responsibilities to the people of Kenya, we
believe in holding our suppliers up to the very highest of
ethical standards. Accordingly, we continue to insist that
suppliers commit to the Code of Ethics for Businesses in
Kenya. Among other responsibilities, the Code requires
companies to tackle corruption actively, to introduce
internal controls and programmes to achieve this, and to
report back to the GCNK annually on progress. We are
pleased to note that 269 or 81% of suppliers with running
contracts have signed up to date.
Although our tough stance has not made us popular with
certain sections of the business community and forced us
to make tough decisions at times, we remain steadfast in
our belief that stamping out corruption is the single most
important thing we can do to transform the lives of Kenyans
and that it underpins every other effort we make in this
regard.
Holding ourselves to the same high standards
It is important to acknowledge that we should hold ourselves
— as a company and as individuals — to the same ethical
standards and principles to which we ask others to adhere.
It is equally important to admit that this is an area in which,
I believe, we can still improve. We have come a long way
in the last few years, but have we made these ethical
principles part of our individual, personal values?
I believe that the time is right for us to think about our own
ethical values. Individually, we need to decide on the
standards of behaviour to which we will hold ourselves
accountable. Are we, for instance, people who will act with
honesty and integrity, no matter the consequences? Do we
do the right thing, even if it isn’t in our own best interests?
These are important considerations for us as a company
and, accordingly, I was pleased to be able to take part in
the ‘I do the right thing’ campaign during the year, which
encouraged us to become aware of our own ethical values
and to take personal ownership and responsibility for these.
Helping restore dignity to impoverished refugees
Chakula Chap Chap
is perhaps the partnership from this
year of which I am proudest. A collaboration with the UN
World Food Programme (WFP) and the Kenyan government,
the partnership is helping refugees in Kakuma acquire food
aid conveniently and with dignity.
“Corruption remains one of the
single biggest obstacles to our
long-term sustainability and
shared prosperity.”
“Our tough stance
has not made us popular
with certain sections of the
business community and
forced us to make tough
decisions at times.”
“Are we people who will act
with honest and integrity, no
matter the consequences?”