As we mentioned in our previous newsletter, EXPO 2020 will showcase outstanding examples of international collaboration and innovation through thematic weeks built around the themes of sustainability, mobility and opportunity. The event is the first world exhibition to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (the MEASA region): a global experience, a bridge to bring people, communities, companies and nations together; an inspiration, a challenge, a real solution to improve everyday life. But beyond all that, the World Expo is about innovation, collaboration and Dubai’s commitment to building a cleaner, more liveable and healthier future.

Continuing the October series, the Travel & Connectivity Week in January 2022 was organised by National Mobile Payment Plc. (NMP Plc.) activities to a targeted professional audience was further showcased at the EXPO “Hungarian Best Practices” event series, hosted in the Hungarian Pavilion. The aim of the presentations was to provide an insight into Hungarian best practices, such as the operation of the national mobile payment system, with a special focus on its relevance for national and regional sustainability.

During the presentations, business forums and professional discussions, NM Plc. staff contributed to the sharing of knowledge on regional and global innovative-technical initiatives, and participants had the opportunity to map working solutions and know-how, and to compare Hungarian working solutions with regional and global peer services.

The previous discussions at the regional level, in the framework of the V4 Smart Platform Project 2 (V4SP2), continued. The partners confirmed that the initiative is a good opportunity for the service sector as well, as they play an active role in the ecosystem of the emerging service model as part of the tourism sector, and are interested in creating interoperability of services and enhancing the customer experience.

A further conclusion is that there will be a need to maintain the professional dialogue of the V4SP2 community and to extend the communication of the project and the V4 region to the V4+ countries. For this reason, several V4+ countries have indicated their willingness to participate in further events of the project, and a thematic continuation of the project’s further events in 2022 is already being organised with the participation of these stakeholders.

The Buddy4All solution aims at fostering the wellbeing and active lifestyle of older adults. It motivates them to keep their mind and body trained via cognitive-physical exercises and supportive and fun cross-generational activities. Using a mobile app and novel mixed reality glasses, Buddy4All provides personal support via a multi-tiered buddy network. Buddy4All targets (a) cross-generational connection of older and younger adults, (b) cognitive-physical training, (c) a combination of virtual, professional and cross-generational support, all to preserve social inclusion, cognitive and physical fitness and personal wellbeing that leads to a healthy lifestyle. Buddy4All does not only target older adults but also younger adults who want to contribute to society and profit from the life experience of the older generation. They can not only give but also receive support and quality time.

Buddy4All provides cross-generational, virtual and professional support for both – older and younger adults – in a way that has never been available before. Further, mixed reality location-based games and cognitive-physical trainings are new to the AAL target group. Buddy4All will offer unique benefit to the primary end-users by providing effective support, exercises and cross-generational activities for mental and physical health in combination with all-time motivation and fun. Buddy4All will introduce three unique innovations: (1) a multi-tiered buddy network that focuses on cross-generational interaction, support, and experience exchange where both – younger adults and older adults – can profit from each other; (2) MR location-based games that can be played together with remote partners, where the younger adult is walking outside and the older adult can see on his mobile phone or tablet what the younger adult is seeing and help him solve different puzzles; (3) combined cognitive-physical trainings where proven brain trainings become more active and fun.

Our newest member is DVM Group Kft. Founded in 1995,  represented by Massányi Tibor, with HUF almost 27 billion sales revenue with 140 employees for 2020. DVM Group Kft. provides integrated engineering and construction services covering the full spectrum of the investment process from design to operation.

DVM is committed to making sustainability a part of everyday practice, both in the whole process of running projects and in the way we live in the office. They are actively seeking to contribute to making the construction industry and the built environment less environmentally damaging. Since 2008 the company has  been running a sustainability branch, which ensures its responsible operations. The company is also an active member of the Hungarian Green Building Council/HuGBC, a member organisation of the World Green Building Council. Their ethical operation is in line with the Hungarian legal environment and the Labour Code. They ensure equal rights by applying labour protection directives and non-discriminatory practices in line with today’s European standards.

Their membership aims at the development of sustainable business operations, the development and integration of sustainability guidelines for business operations. Furthermore, meeting like-minded business partners, sharing knowledge, collaborating, transferring successful experiences and further developing business sustainability.

Nestlé announced a new plan to tackle child labor risks in cocoa production. At the center is an innovative income accelerator program, which aims to improve the livelihoods of cocoa-farming families, while also advancing regenerative agriculture practices and gender equality. A cash incentive will be paid directly to cocoa-farming households for certain activities such as enrollment of children in school and pruning among several others. Nestlé’s new plan also supports the company’s work to transform its global sourcing of cocoa to achieve full traceability and segregation for its cocoa products. As Nestlé continues to expand its cocoa sustainability efforts, the company plans to invest a total of CHF 1.3 billion by 2030, more than tripling its current annual investment.

The income accelerator program offers a novel approach to help support farmers and their families in their transition to more sustainable cocoa farming. The incentives will encourage behaviors and agricultural practices that are designed to steadily build social and economic resilience over time. With Nestlé’s new approach, cocoa-farming families will now be rewarded not only for the quantity and quality of cocoa beans they produce but also for the benefits they provide to the environment and local communities. These incentives are on top of the premium introduced by the governments of Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana that Nestlé pays and the premiums Nestlé offers for certified cocoa. This cocoa is independently audited against the Rainforest Alliance Sustainable Agriculture Standard, promoting the social, economic and environmental well-being of farmers and local communities.

Cocoa-farming communities face immense challenges, including widespread rural poverty, increasing climate risks and a lack of access to financial services and basic infrastructure like water, health care and education. These complex factors contribute to the risk of child labor on family farms. Together with partners, including governments, and building on a promising pilot program, Nestlé’s new initiative sharpens focus on these root causes of child labor.

“Our goal is to have an additional tangible, positive impact on a growing number of cocoa-farming families, especially in areas where poverty is widespread and resources are scarce, and to help close the living income gap they face over time,” said Mark Schneider, Nestlé CEO. “Building on our longstanding efforts to source cocoa sustainably, we will continue to help children go to school, empower women, improve farming methods and facilitate financial resources. We believe that, together with governments, NGOs and others in the cocoa industry, we can help improve the lives of cocoa-farming families and give children the chance to learn and grow in the safe and healthy environment they deserve.”

Creating cash incentives to grow income substantially

The program rewards practices that increase crop productivity and help secure additional sources of income, which aim to close the gap to living income and help protect children. By engaging in these practices, families can additionally earn up to CHF 500 annually for the first two years of the program. The higher incentive at the start will help accelerate the implementation of good agricultural practices to build future impact. This incentive will then be leveled at CHF 250 thereafter as the program starts delivering tangible results. It is not paid based on the volume of cocoa sold and is inclusive to provide smaller farmers meaningful support, leaving no one behind. In a departure from normal practice, the program also offers financial incentives for the farmer’s spouse, who is typically responsible for household expenses and childcare. By dividing the payments between the farmer and the spouse, the program helps empower women and improve gender equality. Examples of practices that Nestlé is incentivizing include:

• School enrollment for all children in the household ages 6-16;
• Implementing good agricultural practices, such as pruning, which increase crop productivity;
• Performing agroforestry activities to increase climate resilience, like planting shade trees;
• Generating diversified incomes, for example through growing other crops, raising livestock such as chickens, beekeeping or processing other products like cassava.

Payments will be delivered via a secure mobile service transfer that will ensure traceability directly from Nestlé suppliers to the intended recipient. Because cash flow throughout the year is often a challenge, cash incentives will be distributed when they are needed most. Based on feedback from farmers, this includes the back-to-school period and before the rainy season. Third parties, including International Cocoa Initiative and Rainforest Alliance, will work with Nestlé to monitor participation.

Helping farmers implement sustainable, scalable practices

Building on the positive results of an initial pilot in 2020 with 1,000 farmers in Côte d’Ivoire, in 2022 Nestlé will expand the program to include 10,000 families in the country, before extending it to Ghana in 2024. It will then assess the results of that test phase and adapt where necessary, before moving to reach all cocoa-farming families in its global cocoa supply chain by 2030.

Nestlé will help ensure farmers have the resources, training and social and financial structures to make lasting changes by:

• Enhancing the existing monitoring and remediation system to help identify, prevent and address child labor risk and increase school enrollment;
• Offering families training through the Gender Action Learning Systemand on household financial planning and entrepreneurship;
• Organizing and training local groups to perform pruning and other beneficial agricultural tasks within a given cooperative each year;
• Providing income diversification opportunities for farmers and their spouses;
• Helping set up Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA), focused on women, to encourage savings and provide loans for small business opportunities.

Feedback and input from farmers and farmer cooperatives, as well as ongoing data collection and evaluation by third parties, will be used to inform, modify and improve the program as it scales up to more communities. In addition, independent oversight will be provided by a multistakeholder strategic advisory committee managed by IDH-The Sustainable Trade Initiative, a leading foundation that works to improve the sustainability of international supply chains.

Tracing all cocoa from origin to factory

As part of the program, Nestlé will transform the global sourcing of cocoa to achieve full traceability and segregation of its cocoa products from origin to factory. This new effort will help transform the supply chain of Nestlé and the broader industry. Nestlé will introduce a range of products with cocoa sourced from this innovative program, offering consumers the opportunity to support the improvement of the families’ livelihoods and the protection of children. This will start with a selection of KitKat products in 2023.

“Our actions can help catalyze change on an important topic that is so close to our hearts. They will drive accountability and transparency across the industry, at a time when customers, employees and communities increasingly expect companies to deliver on their shared values,” said Magdi Batato, Executive Vice President and Head of Operations. “By increasing traceability at scale, we will help build consumer trust in our products and respond to the growing demand for responsibly and sustainably sourced cocoa.”

Today’s announcement builds on Nestle’s longstanding efforts to tackle child labor risks in cocoa production. The company has invested in sustainability through the Nestlé Cocoa Plan since 2009. Through a robust monitoring and remediation system instituted since 2012, 149,443 children have been assisted to protect them against the risk of child labor, and 53 schools have been built or refurbished. This system is now the industry standard by which companies monitor their supply chains.

Our newest member is Saint-Gobain Hungary Kft. founded in 1990,  represented by Piros Attila, with HUF around 26 million sales revenue with 281 employees for 2019. The main activity of the company is the mining and manufacturing of construction products.

Their integrated policy provides a framework for formulating and evaluating their goals, which contributes to the continuous improvement of environmental and energy performance.Their climate protection commitments cover energy use, CO2 emissions, waste management, water management, raw material use and packaging. In the course of their activities and processes, Saint-Gobain Hungary Kft. ensure the protection of the environment, the prevention of environmental pollution, the energy-saving and efficient use of resources, and the reduction of their energy demand. Saint-Gobain Hungary Kft. contributes to the creation of healthy homes, as well as ensuring well-being at work for employees,  and also contributes to  eliminating inequalities in the society through their foundations. The company’s internal green working group will start operating in 2022, with the aim of transforming attitudes, exchanging knowledge and thinking together in all areas of sustainability. Furthermore, the company has introduced energy management performance indicators appropriate to the nature of the organization, which are reviewed regularly. In addition to several international initiatives, Saint-Gobain Hungary Kft. has been a part of the UN Global Compact since 2003 and in 2021 joined the Women Empowerment Principles initiative.

The aim of their membership is to develop joint professional work and active dialogue, enabling them to be among the first to be informed about current issues related to sustainability in Hungary.