A driver of positive change
EPK is a proud driver of positive change not just internally but more widely in the tea/ agriculture industry. The company work towards gender equity and equality in several programmes including, SHARP, Sexual Harassment Prevention and Reporting Programme and TABASAMU, a menstrual health and hygiene programme.
“For EPK, TABSAMU is not just about donating sanitary towels, it is to make sure simple opportunities for fun and adventure are realised by young girls and women as well as ensuring comfort at the workplace.”
Joyce spoke of her own experiences growing up, “I would think like what if I’m playing and my pad falls down? There was that fear. So, you limit yourself, you do not have fun, play with other children. For EPK, what we want to see is that our adolescent girls do not miss opportunities, and our female employees do not miss opportunities at work just because they are on their period.”
As well as programmes focussing on gender specific improvements, EPK’s CSR initiatives cover many areas including education and health care. We spoke of the changes within the education system in Kenya and the challenges this has created with infrastructure.
“When children attend school and progress, they end up contributing meaningfully to the community. Just recently we have put a lot of focus on ICT looking at how to narrow the digital gap, working with schools to set up computer labs. Science is also a focus, as there is a big shortage of science labs.”