Godrej Industries : GCPL extends Project EMBED to Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh

GCPL extends Project EMBED to Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh

25 April 2019

Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL) has announced the expansion of Project EMBED (Elimination of Mosquito Borne Endemic Diseases) to Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh. The project will cover 200 villages in the Bastar and Kondagaon districts of Chhattisgarh, and 200 villages in the Bareily and Badaun districts of Uttar Pradesh. This expansion will impact 1,50,000 people at risk from malaria. GCPL will work closely with the Ministry of Health in these two states for further scale-up in the years ahead.

On April 25, 2017, World Malaria Day, GCPL committed to support a malaria free India by 2030 and commissioned Project EMBED, which aims to reduce morbidity and mortality caused by vector borne diseases. The project focuses on behaviour change campaigns, imparting education and conducting awareness activities for communities at the bottom of the pyramid to be empowered to take charge of their own protection. In its first phase, EMBED covered 207 villages across 2 districts, Mandla and Dindori, in Madhya Pradesh, a state with one of the highest burdens of malaria in India. Within a year, there was a 2% increase in testing for malaria, 11% increase in use of mosquito repellents or bed nets, and 80% of the villages reported a reduced malaria burden.

In its second phase, the project was extended to 7 additional districts, covering 1,300 villages and 2,00,000 households across Jhabua, Sheopur, Shivpuri, Sidhi, Singrauli, Alirajpur and Balaghat with high malaria burdens. By March 2019, 81% of the villages reported zero cases of malaria and there was a 21% increase in the use of mosquito repellents or bed nets.

EMBED has been developed in line with the National Framework for Malaria Elimination (NFME) 2016-2030, which outlines India's agenda to eliminate the disease by 2030. The project also collaborates with the government on environment management and vector control activities as part of Swachh Bharat. In the last couple of years, EMBED has reached 10,16,453 people at high-risk for malaria.

Commenting on the project, Vivek Gambhir, Managing Director and CEO, Godrej Consumer Products Limited, said:

'As a company, Godrej has always actively championed social responsibility. We are deeply committed to driving the social progress of the communities that our businesses operate in. We have a 'shared value' approach to business growth and innovation. The idea is to link business success with social progress.

We have been working closely with the Government of Madhya Pradesh since we commissioned EMBED in April 2016. We are very thankful for the support and encouragement that the Government and Family Health India have extended towards the elimination of vector borne diseases in the state. We believe that by building strong partnerships and creating community engagement, we can make huge strides in our efforts towards the elimination of malaria in India by 2030. We are encouraged by the progress made by EMBED in Madhya Pradesh and are looking forward to replicate our intervention and engagement model, and learnings in Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh.

Vikas Goswami, Head, Sustainability - Good & Green, Godrej Industries Limited and Associate Companies, added:

'Behaviour change is the cornerstone of EMBED. It has helped empower communities with the right information and encourage patterns of preventive usage. Our overall goal is to improve awareness related to vector borne diseases, and increase adoption and usage of mosquito prevention strategies, which will significantly contribute to the reduction of the economic burden and loss in productivity caused by these diseases.'

About Godrej Consumer Products Limited

Godrej Consumer Products is a leading emerging markets company. As part of the over 122-year young Godrej Group, we are fortunate to have a proud legacy built on the strong values of trust, integrity and respect for others. At the same time, we are growing fast and have exciting, ambitious aspirations.

Today, our Group enjoys the patronage of 1.15 billion consumers globally, across different businesses. In line with our 3 by 3 approach to international expansion at Godrej Consumer Products, we are building a presence in 3 emerging markets (Asia, Africa, Latin America) across 3 categories (home care, personal care, hair care). We rank among the largest household insecticide and hair care players in emerging markets. In household insecticides, we are the leader in India and Indonesia and are expanding our footprint in Africa. We are the leader in serving the hair care needs of women of African descent, the number one player in hair colour in India and Sub-Saharan Africa, and among the leading players in Latin America. We rank number two in soaps in India, are the number one player in air fresheners in India and Indonesia, and a leader in wet tissues in Indonesia.

But for us, it is very important that besides our strong financial performance and innovative, much-loved products, we remain a good company. Approximately 23 per cent of the promoter holding in the Godrej Group is held in trusts that invest in the environment, health and education. We are also bringing together our passion and purpose to make a difference through our 'Good & Green' approach to create a more inclusive and greener India.

At the heart of all of this, is our talented team. We take much pride in fostering an inspiring workplace, with an agile and high-performance culture. We are also deeply committed to recognising and valuing diversity across our teams.

Read more at http://www.godrejcp.com/

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