The Coca-Cola Bottling Company of North Texas initiated a strong partnership with World Vision in 2004 with the provision of startup funds for a community outreach facility in Dallas, Texas.
Since then, the collaboration with Coca-Cola has expanded globally to include two major water initiatives in India and Africa. This partnership combines Coca-Cola’s expertise and resources with World Vision’s size, scale, and proven success in water and sanitation work to help create stronger communities, better schools, and sustainable supplies of water in areas where Coca-Cola is invested.
Coca-Cola India selected World Vision as one of the core partners to help implement the Support My School program, which is revitalizing hundreds of schools in India with clean, gender-separated toilets and access to water — promoting the health and dignity of nearly 100,000 students and improving school attendance rates, especially among girls.
Images: Building brighter futures in India
The Coca-Cola Africa Foundation is also partnering with World Vision on a comprehensive project called Replenish Africa Initiative (RAIN) which aims to improve access to clean water for 2 million people in Africa.
World Vision, one of several RAIN partners, is utilizing its integrated development model and effective water and sanitation delivery systems to drill new borehole wells in providing clean water on two continents rural areas, rehabilitate urban water points, build latrines, and train community members in safe hygiene practices.
Together, these activities are reducing the incidence of water-related diseases, freeing children — especially girls — to go to school instead of trekking long distances for dirty water, and enabling parents to invest more time in income-generating activities.
RAIN initiatives developed between Coca-Cola and World Vision are empowering more than 50,000 people in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Mauritania to protect their health and livelihoods.
Altogether, nearly half a million people in Africa will benefit directly or indirectly from Coca-Cola and World Vision’s joint efforts, thanks to improved access to safe water and the establishment of legal protections that will control water price speculation.
Coca-Cola and World Vision have built a robust partnership through their ongoing work in India and Africa. In the coming year, the partnership is poised to expand in many other countries around the globe, focusing on the integration of multiple sectors: water, economic development, education, and health, plus advocacy initiatives. This strategic collaboration is bringing long-term, sustainable transformation to areas of great need around the world.