Safaricom 2023 Sustainable Business Report

68 OUR BUSINESS KPI SUMMARY OUR MATERIAL TOPICS SAFARICOM SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS REPORT 2023 OUR STAKEHOLDERS • Developed Safaricom Foundation 2023 – 2026 strategy. 2.4 million lives impacted through • Foundations programmes. • 1 027 youth trainees equipped with sustainable skills for the construction and hospitality industries under the Safaricom Foundation Scholarships initiative. • M-PESA Foundation Academy reached 414 learners and supported 574 students in various tertiary institutions. • Over 40 000 women reached through the Afya Uzazi Salama programme. • Supported 392 initiatives across 47 counties through the Ndoto Zetu Phase 4 initiative, benefiting over 709 537 people. • 530 farmers have been engaged and empowered through Wezesha Agri. We are partnering to accelerate socio-economic and educational upliftment (SDG17), prioritising maternal, neonatal and child health programmes (SDG3); and working to enhance educational and economic empowerment outcomes through all levels of society (SDGs 4, 8 and 10). PARTNERING TO ENHANCE EQUITY In FY23, the Safaricom Foundation launched its 2023 – 2026 strategy, Partnering to Enhance Equity. This was developed following a comprehensive review of the 2018-2021 strategy, together with an analysis on pressing community development priority needs, meeting with partners, community members, research and academic institutions, county and national government representatives, thought leaders, resource providers/ donors and benchmarking with lead foundations. Both Foundations have continuously analysed the reports to grasp what is and what is not working in the investment of social impact interventions, using the learning to improve on the design and implementation of its subsequent interventions. Through these engagements, valuable insights and a comprehensive understanding of both the Safaricom and M-PESA Foundations’ impact in communities was developed. The engagements shaped the understanding of purpose, vision and priority investment areas which will significantly contribute to solving societal needs sustainably. We also considered community concerns including limited community capacity to deliver quality programmes and ability to sustain these, as well as the number of requests overtaking available resources. Some of the lessons learned include the need to bring other funding partners on board to scale initiatives, ensuring both county and national governments’ ownership to promote sustainability and increase investments in Ndoto Zetu which has improved the lives of people across all 47 counties. Sustainable philanthropy and humanitarian response have been integrated into the key pillars of the programme as set out on the following page to ensure we deliver impactful philanthropic investments to address communities’ urgent needs and immediate concerns. SOCIETY • Ongoing drought in ASAL regions and floods in low land areas. • Rising food and energy prices. • Insurgency in some counties impacting speed of programme delivery and community engagement initiatives. ISSUES FOR SOCIETY OUR HIGHLIGHTS SDG GOALS