ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP

Environmental stewardship is vital to reducing inequalities. We recognise that our operations have an impact on the environment, and that we must act in an environmentally responsible and sustainable manner, report our impact transparently, and mitigate our impact.

“Poverty-environment mainstreaming is a powerful practice to help eradicating poverty, reducing inequality and combating environmental degradation. Economic development and poverty reduction strongly depend on improving management of the environment and natural resources, the ‘natural capital’ of the poor.”

– Isabell Kempf, co-Director, joint UN Development Programme and UN Environment Programme (UNDP-UNEP) Poverty-Environment Initiative

In FY17, we announced our aspiration to become a net zero carbonemitting company by the year 2050. In FY18, we introduced targets aligned to the science-based targets initiative (SBTi), in line with climate science to future-proof our growth and plot our progress towards achieving this ambitious goal. In FY19 we have converted our net-zero aspiration from policy to action.

Our clean and renewable energy initiatives go a long way toward greening the network, reducing carbon emissions and improving our overall energy efficiency. We continue to implement our green procurement policy across the business, and partner with organisations committed to combating climate change such as the B-Team and UN Global Compact.

In FY19 all our environmental impact assessment (EIA) data was automated, improving efficiency, reducing turnaround time and driving EIA compliance.

Kempf, I. (2018), “Poverty and the environment/climate change”, United Nations, available at https://www.un.org/development/desa/dspd/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2018/05/9.pdf (accessed 20 June 2019)

OECD Pathway

Summary of milestones science-based reductions required to achieve our ‘net zero’ target by 2050

* The balance of 26% will be offset through a programme of carbon offset projects

MANAGING OUR EMISSIONS

Our Scope 1 emissions reduced by 8.3 per cent as a result of the decrease in diesel use, despite increase in the number of sites. This is attributed to the use Fuel Management System (FMS), energy efficient devices and renewable energy solutions.

Scope 2 emissions increased by around 12.6 per cent, nonetheless, because of the continued expansion of our network and the accelerated connection of national grid electricity to new sites (instead of being powered by diesel generators).

Our Scope 3 emissions also increased slightly from 3,814 tonnes in FY18 to 5,818 tonnes in FY19.

NET-ZERO 2050 ACTION PLAN
Our aspiration is to be carbon-neutral in terms of tCO2 emissions by 2050. We have calculated that, with existing technology, the minimum Scope 1 and 2 emissions of which the company will be capable by 2050 are equivalent to 26 per cent of current levels. In the next financial year we look forward to setting our scope 3 targets which account for 8.9 per cent of our total emissions. This gives us opportunity to rally our top suppliers to also take action on climate by setting science based targets for their respective organisations.

We may not be able to reduce our carbon footprint to zero in the medium term, so what cannot be eliminated must be offset. We have partnered with Kenya Forest Service (KFS) to plant a forest of one million indigenous trees over five years. The project is expected to offset over 300,000 tonnes of carbon once the trees have grown to maturity.

In time, additional benefi ts from the forestation project will include providing jobs and stimulating economic growth in the local community, generating income from sales of tree seedlings, eco-tourism and beekeeping.

STAFF CARBON-FOOTPRINT CALCULATOR
In February 2019, we piloted a tool among selected staff that allows employees to calculate and assess their personal “carbon footprint”; i.e. the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere as a result of their individual activities. This tool raises awareness and encourages individual and collective responsibility in reducing carbon emissions. In the next financial year we plan to expand the pilot to involve more employees.

In the year under review, we continued running awareness and training programmes aimed at preparing our staff to use less while achieving more. More than 50 champions of SDG 12 now engage their peers in a cultural shift towards responsible consumption and production.

“The tool is useful and the information on my carbon footprint is quite enlightening. I realise that anything you do on a daily basis counts. Without this measurement I would be in the business-as-usual mode of doing things, but now I have committed to carpooling with a colleague and plan to plant 100 trees to offset my personal carbon footprint.”

– Ida Juma, Safaricom staff

ONE PLANET SUMMIT – AFRICA PLEDGE
Africa is the continent most affected by the consequences of climate change – droughts, fl oods, coastal erosion – despite being responsible for only 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

The One Planet Summit, a coalition dedicated to accelerating the global transition to a low carbon economy, took place in Nairobi on 14 March alongside the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), hosted by Presidents Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya and Emmanuel Macron of France. The event brought together government, private sector and non-governmental organisations in calling for accelerated climate action to deliver high impact outcomes for African populations and to protect biodiversity in Africa.

OUR OVERALL ENERGY AND RESOURCE CONSUMPTION

As the following graphic illustrates, our electricity consumption increased by 12.6 per cent during the year as a result of the continued expansion of our network and the accelerated connection of national grid electricity to new sites. Our fuel consumption increased by 7.9 per cent, from 9,432,788 litres in FY18 to 10,181,646 litres in FY19.

Today our energy consumption is offset or mitigated in a variety of ways, including the engagement of a mini-grid constructor partner at our Remba island site, which is not connected to the national grid. Rectifi ers (electronic devices that convert alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) for better energy effi ciency) and low-voltage automatic phase selectors (APS) enable us to utilise lower voltages.

MANAGING OUR ENERGY CONSUMPTION

Our energy reduction strategy includes planning for different operating modes, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels, improving site efficiencies, greenhouse gas (GHG) and carbon emission reductions, and a roadmap towards net zero at all of our sites.

Repeaters and monitoring tools are having a positive impact on energy efficiency, and there has been a reduction in per-site costs on build.

* Wind, solar and hybrid
** Most of our sites with access to the national grid also have deep cycle batteries for back up, so the quantities may not add up to 100%.

REDUCING ENERGY INEFFICIENCIES
We have rolled out a programme to replace inefficient rectifiers and old generators, as well as to connect some unconnected sites to commercial power (so far, 394 out of 424 sites have been connected). We also are replacing our back-up batteries with more efficient cyclic batteries.

We have developed a site cost tool to manage fuelling process and payment, which will address problems of fuel theft and visibility of stock. Installation is still in progress, but we already have improved our fuelling process management at 1,800 sites, reducing our average spend on fuel from 140 litres to 80 litres per day.

We have been addressing challenges relating to the project management of our fuel management system (FMS) through regular feedback meetings and by including other stakeholders, such as field engineers and security personnel. The system has now been rolled out at 1,715 out of 2,000 sites.

RENEWABLE ENERGY
NETWORK ENERGY SOURCES
We continue spearheading green solutions on our network sites, particularly the installation of renewable energy alternatives to high-carbon technologies.

We are trialling wind turbines on two of our sites in Turkana. A battery optimisation project is under way on sites where we have good battery autonomy and stable, consistent access to the national grid. At these sites we have discontinued the use of generators, instead using battery power as a backup. This also saves costs incurred by site maintenance.

Hybrid systems have been rolled out at 91 out of 100 planned sites for FY19, using lithium batteries and solar power, supplemented by 50 per cent generator power.

“We continue spearheading green solutions on our network sites, particularly the installation of renewable energy alternatives to high-carbon technologies.”

WASTE MANAGEMENT

INTEGRATED WASTE MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME

In FY19 we began measuring the progress of our integrated waste management programme (IWM). Through out partnership with Taka Taka Solutions, a local waste management company, we have undertaken to separate all our waste for recycling. Over 97 per cent of all waste from our main facilities was either reused, repurposed or recycled. We have also expanded the scope of the programme to include our fi ve main mobile switch rooms in Nairobi. The sourcing team has led a culture of waste reduction in our sourcing cycles. Environmental consciousness and waste reduction play a key role in supplier selection, and partners who lack environmental compliance certifications are disqualified.

BECOMING A PLASTIC-FREE ORGANISATION
We are dedicated to becoming a plastic-free environment by eliminating all single-use plastic at our facilities and minimising the plastic used in our retail packaging.

Single-use plastic has been phased out in all our cafeterias across the country.
Staff are encouraged to carry reusable water bottles.
Single-use plastic tumblers for use by visitors will be replaced with reusable glasses. The project is slated for roll out in May 2019.
We have reduced the size of our SIM cards, effectively halving the amount of plastic used in their production.
In total, this initiative has removed 2.52 tonnes of plastic from our organisation, conserved 8.64 tonnes of paper, and saved KSh 46.8 million.

The government ban first on single-use plastics and then on non-woven bags has required us to seek a more permanent solution for our retail outlets and dealers. We are working with suppliers to find a long lasting solution.

MANAGING ELECTRONIC WASTE
E-waste, which consists of inappropriately discarded electrical or electronic devices, is a growing problem. Only 20 per cent of global e-waste is recycled each year, leaving 40 million tonnes to be placed in landfi lls, burned or illegally traded. Much of it consists of hazardous materials such as mercury, cadmium and sulphur. The consequence is a loss to the supply chain of valuable and critical raw materials, as well as serious health, environmental and societal issues. We continue to collect and manage e-waste with our partner, the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Centre.

INTERNATIONAL E-WASTE DAY
On 13 October 2018, we joined organisations around the world in celebrating the fi rst-ever International E-Waste Day, along with the WEEE Centre and other partners. Invited guests including members of Parliament used the day to raise the public profi le of e-waste recycling and to encourage customers, consumers and government institutions to recycle devices through our e-waste management programme. In the ensuing six months, nationwide public consultations were held on three proposed pieces of e-waste legislation due to be enacted in 2019.

WATER MANAGEMENT

WATER CONSUMPTION
Our measured water consumption increased in the year under review by 9.2 per cent. This increase was due to the newly opened care centre at Eldoret, which consumed 9,169m3.

LOOKING AHEAD TO 2020

In the year ahead, we will continue implementing our plans to become a net zero carbon-emitting company by 2050.
We plan to achieve ISO 50001 Energy Management certifi cation by March 2020, as well as fully roll out smart commercial meters as planned.
We continue working towards a plastic-free Safaricom.
2020 will see a roll out of our Integrated Waste Management (IWM) programme to all regional sites and offices.
The staff carbon footprint calculator pilot will be expanded company-wide.