UGANDA – Coca-Cola Beverages Africa (CCBA) has consolidated its two Ugandan bottling subsidiaries, Century Bottling Company Limited (CBC) and Rwenzori Bottling Company Limited (RBC) to form a single operating entity under the name Coca-Cola Beverages Uganda Limited (CCBU).
The amalgamation is aimed at improving the Uganda operations by streamlining management of the business and improving efficiencies through standardised processes, optimised costs and increased service levels.
The cashless transaction has seen all CBC employees transferring over to RBC, which has now been renamed Coca-Cola Beverages Uganda.
“This is the final step in a process to create one Coca-Cola Beverages Uganda and consolidate our resources to drive growth and benefit for our employees, customers, consumers and the wider communities in which we operate, with increased efficiency and opportunities to make Africa a better continent for all,” said General Manager, Melkamu Abebe.
The move comes at a time CCBA is celebrating six years of investment and shared opportunity in Africa.
The bottler was born through a merger between the Southern and East Africa bottling operations of the non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages businesses of The Coca-Cola Company, SABMiller plc and Gutsche Family Investments in 2016.
With a capital investment of about US$1.4 billion since 2017, it has created significant positive economic impact throughout the markets where it operates in.
CCBA’s production capacity has increased to approximately 122 lines, theoretically capable of turning out 1.5-billion-unit cases a year, reaching more than 600,000 outlets through an extensive distribution network including over 1,000 third party strategic distributors and 1,800 branded trucks.
Its African footprint now encompasses South Africa, Ghana, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, Mozambique, Comoros, Mayotte, Zambia, Botswana, Eswatini and Lesotho.
“As part of the Coca-Cola system, CCBA is best known for global brands, but we are a firmly local business, embedded in the communities in which we operate.
“We are locally staffed, locally-led and we produce locally, meaning the economic benefits of CCBA’s operations produce strong multiplier effects for local economies, creating employment and opportunity across the value chain as 83% of our inputs are locally sourced, creating room for suppliers to integrate into our value chain,” says CCBA CEO Jacques Vermeulen.
With its continued investments in its production and distribution capabilities, CCBA is strongly positioned to play its part in Africa’s continued economic development, creating greater shared opportunity for all.
“As CCBA, we strive to grow our business so that local suppliers benefit, jobs are created in the community, governments receive taxes and shareholders receive a return on their investment,” said Vermeulen.
“Because women and youth are integral to our continent’s shared success, we seek to empower them by enabling their economic inclusion throughout our markets on the continent.”
CCBA has adopted the three pillars of education, employability and entrepreneurship as a framework for its economic inclusion strategy.
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