The Nigerian Coca-Cola System, which consists of Nigeria Bottling Company (NBC), the authorised bottler for Coca-Cola Nigeria Limited, and other entities, has declared intentions to increase its investments in the country.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Nigeria hosted a Coca-Cola System delegation at the State House, where the announcement was made.
With a stable and supportive environment in place, the System intends to accelerate its investments in Nigeria to reach US$ 1 billion over the next five years, according to a statement released by Oluwasoromidayo George, Director, Corporate Affairs and Sustainability, Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company.
According to the statement, the investment expands on the System’s extensive commitment in Nigerian communities.
Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, also referred to as the Nigerian Bottling Company locally, has made $1.5 billion in investments in Nigeria during the past ten years. The Coca-Cola System intends to more than quadruple its rate of investment over the next five years, as of today’s announcement.
The Coca-Cola System’s sustained faith in Nigeria’s market and its bright future economic potential is demonstrated by this investment. Support for several value chain segments, such as suppliers, distributors, retailers, and recyclers, is anticipated.
The delegation included the worldwide Coca-Cola System representatives in addition to the Nigerian Coca-Cola System leadership team: John Murphy, President and Chief Financial Officer of The Coca-Cola Company; Henrique Braun, Chief Executive Officer of The Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company; Luisa Ortega, EVP and President, International Development of The Coca-Cola Company; President of The Coca-Cola Africa Operating Unit; and Naya Kalogeraki, Chief Operating Officer of The Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company.
“The investment highlights our system’s efforts to drive scalable initiatives while also preserving the value of local relevance,” Murphy said after the meeting. For more than 96 years, Coca-Cola has been a vital component of Africa, and the company’s recent investment in Nigeria confirms our positive outlook on the region.
Bogdanovic commented: “The Coca-Cola System has been part of Nigerian communities for over 70 years and believes in the strength and continued potential of the market. We are excited to announce this investment, which demonstrates our dedication to fostering economic growth and creating job opportunities in the country.”
“Our investment goes beyond business growth; it’s about contributing to the well-being of the communities we call home. We foresee significant social and economic advancements, which is why we continue to invest in our business operations and community programs in Nigeria,” he concluded.
Ortega stressed the value of teamwork in establishing a solid working environment.
“By working in partnership with the government and other stakeholders, we can drive sustainable development and economic empowerment. Our collective efforts can create a lasting positive impact on the communities we serve.”
Coca-Cola was commended by the President Tinubu for its long-standing relationship with Nigeria and for encouraging investment opportunities that have resulted in the employment of over 3000 workers at nine production plants.
”We are business-friendly, and as I said at my inauguration, we must create an environment of easy-in and easy-out for businesses. We are building a financial system where you can invest, re-invest, and repatriate all your dividends. I have a firm belief in that,” he said.
For more than 96 years, Coca-Cola has left a lasting legacy of reviving Africa and changing the continent. Over 2,800 people are employed by the Coca-Cola System across 8 production facilities in Nigeria, where it has been a vital component of the local economy for 73 years.
According to the statement, a recent economic impact research by Steward Redqueen discovered that 31 extra jobs are supported nationwide for each job generated by the Coca-Cola System.
It was mentioned that the Coca-Cola System is still making investments in Nigeria’s socioeconomic growth while stepping up its sustainability initiatives. These initiatives include funding youth empowerment, supplying clean, drinkable water, and supporting the development of a more robust infrastructure for collecting plastic waste across the nation.
Concurrently, Nwamaka Onyemelukwe, Senior Director, Public Affairs, Communication & Sustainability, Nigeria, Coca-Cola Nigeria Limited, elucidated that the Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a global beverage conglomerate, marketing its products beyond 200 nations and territories. The goal of our organisation is to change the world and bring about renewal. We are global distributors of many billion-dollar brands in several beverage categories.
She said: “Our portfolio of sparkling soft drink brands includes Coca-Cola, Sprite and Fanta. Our water, sports, coffee and tea brands include Dasani, smartwater, vitaminwater, Topo Chico, BODYARMOR, Powerade, Costa, Georgia, Gold Peak and Ayataka. Our juice, value-added dairy and plant-based beverage brands include Minute Maid, Simply, innocent, Del Valle, fairlife and AdeS.
“We’re constantly transforming our portfolio, from reducing sugar in our drinks to bringing innovative new products to market. We seek to positively impact people’s lives, communities and the planet through water replenishment, packaging recycling, sustainable sourcing practices and carbon emissions reductions across our value chain. Together with our bottling partners, we employ more than 700,000 people, helping bring economic opportunity to local communities worldwide. Learn more at and follow us on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.”
Regarding the Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, Onyemelukwe noted that it is a strategically important bottling partner of The Coca-Cola Company and a consumer packaged goods company with an emphasis on expansion.
“We open up moments that refresh us all, by creating value for our stakeholders and supporting the socio-economic development of the communities in which we operate.
“With a vision to be the leading 24/7 beverage partner, we offer drinks for all occasions around the clock and work together with our customers to serve 740 million consumers across a broad geographic footprint of 29 countries.
“Our portfolio is one of the strongest, broadest and most flexible in the beverage industry, with consumer-leading beverage brands in the sparkling, adult sparkling, juice, water, sport, energy, ready-to-drink tea, coffee, and premium spirits categories. These include Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Fanta, Sprite, Schweppes, Kinley, Costa Coffee, CaffèVergnano, Valser, FuzeTea, Powerade, Cappy, Monster Energy, The Macallan, Jack Daniel’s and Grey Goose.
“We foster an open and inclusive work environment amongst our more than 30,000 employees and believe that building a more positive environmental impact is integral to our future growth. We rank among the top sustainability performers in ESG benchmarks such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices, CDP, MSCI ESG, FTSE4Good and ISS ESG. Coca-Cola HBC has a premium listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE: CCH) and is listed on the Athens Exchange (ATHEX: EEE).”
According to Onyemelukwe, the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), founded in 1951 by Greek-Cypriot businessman A.G. Leventis, is the origin of the Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company’s lengthy history in Nigeria.
“Since then, our business has evolved to become an essential global partner of The Coca-Cola Company. Expanding our horizons, we acquired the Coca-Cola bottling franchise (the Hellenic Bottling Company) in Greece, in 1981, then following a merger in 2001, the company was renamed to become Coca-Cola HBC.”
