THE WINNING PROGRAM

Unilever leveraged the power of collaboration to bring its best practice workplace program to more than 500,000 people through more than 50 tea growers in the region.

In partnership with both the company's own supply chain and local tea growers, Unilever has brought its comprehensive model-including voluntary counseling and testing, public education and engagement, prevention of mother-to-child transmission and the provision of antiretroviral treatment (ARV)-to the surrounding community. The dramatic scale and reach of the initiative is made possible through collaboration with the Kenya Tea Growers Association and dozens of small-scale farmers that directly supply tea to Unilever.

Unilever used community members to broaden the reach of the program, equipping 92 community members with the tools and knowledge to then train other community members to become peer educators. In total, 510 voluntary peer educators were trained on HIV prevention, where to get tested and how to get treatment-information they are now passing on to their fellow community members. ARV treatment is provided through a partnership with the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS

Expanding from the workplace
Unilever focused on creating a strong workplace program before bringing services to the community. Community and donor partnerships allowed the company to fill gaps and bring the program to scale rapidly, including support from GTZ in developing the community outreach component and a partnership with PEPFAR for the provision of ARV treatment.

Engaging local leaders and stakeholders
Local engagement is critical to Unilever's supply chain efforts. A steering committee composed of 26 local tea companies helps guide the initiative-overseeing implementation and selecting peer educators. Unilever also actively engages the Kenyan National Organisation of Peer Educators (NOPE) and has leveraged the support of Moi University in executing on-the-ground surveying.