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ICEA Lion Uganda has launched a “Go-Green Drive-in Schools” initiative to promote environmental sustainability in response to pressing environmental concerns in Uganda and Africa. The company’s CEO, Emmanuel Mwaka, emphasized the importance of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices for reducing the carbon footprint and safeguarding the environment.

With Uganda and Africa still grappling with a pressing environmental concern, ICEA Lion has responded to this alarming trend with an employee-led initiative in schools to promote environmental sustainability, urging individuals to “ditch the reds and go to the greens’, a reference to the culture transformation journey the company is undertaking.

According to Emmanuel Mwaka, the ICEA Lion Life Assurance CEO, the initiative comes as a response to the critical need for Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices which are vital for the sustenance of the population through a reduction in our carbon footprint.

He noted this this further connects with their mission to protect and create wealth which would certainly be determined by the environment in which they operate.

“We consider ESG very critical for the sustenance of the population, and opting to plant trees in schools is very, very strategic as schools are the channel through which future leaders are raised,” Mwaka said.

He further explained, “And if you’re to make a lasting impression on anyone, you must do it early in life. And what better place to do it than in schools where the youths are carving out their future? Collaboratively, we choose to plant hundreds of thousands of trees over the next few years in various schools.”

The African continent is recording the highest net loss of forest area at 3.9 million hectares per year, according to the recently released Global Forest Resource Assessment report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Eastern and Southern Africa have been identified as the regions accounting for a significant portion of these losses.

According to ICEA Lion, as a way of entrenching responsibility among the citizens of Uganda, the initiative is driven by the company employees who purchase tree seedlings and actively participate in planting the seedlings while interacting with students at the various designated schools.

The company has encouraged all employees to act in the face of environmental challenges.

The Go-Green initiative will see us plant hundreds of thousands of trees over the two years in more than 10 schools in Uganda.

“At the end of the day, you know, we can’t sit back and watch what’s happening around our environment without lifting a finger. At least we must do something, no matter how small,” said Mwaka.

To ensure collective involvement, ICEA Lion Uganda has implemented an accountability partner system within the office.

For every two accountability partners, they commit to planting at least a tree.

With a staff complement exceeding 150 members, this partnership approach is expected to result in the planting of at least 100 trees by staff members alone.

The company also plans to contribute additional trees as part of its commitment to the initiative.

This tree-planting campaign coincided with the celebration of the customer service week, observed under the global theme of team service.

ICEA Lion Uganda says their dedication to this go-green initiative demonstrates the company’s commitment to environmental sustainability and its recognition of the crucial role schools play in nurturing future leaders and environmental stewards.