BAT Kenya, has strengthened its commitment to building a disability inclusive workplace by partnering with the Kenya Business and Disability Network(KBDN).
The partnership is in line with BAT’s Diversity and Inclusion agenda (D&I), which includes a strategic goal to increase the representation of Persons with Disabilities in its employee population to 5 percent by 2025.
Speaking during the signing ceremony, BAT Kenya Managing Director, Crispin Achola said in fostering inclusivity, BAT respects and values difference, and works to continuously build a supportive and engaging culture.
“We think of diversity and inclusion in its widest sense, as those attributes that make each one of us unique. We have made good progress in several D&I areas such as empowerment of women (with women comprising approximately 40% of our total workforce), age, cultural and social backgrounds, amongst others,” said Achola.
To accelerate this progress, Achola said they are enhancing their focus on PWDs.
“This will ensure that we truly live our diversity ethos and speaks to our recognition as a top employer, as certified four times in a row by the global Top Employers Institute. We are delighted to collaborate with the KBDN, who are a key champion of workplace inclusivity for Persons with Disabilities within the business community. We believe that this partnership will be instrumental in driving an expert approach to achieving our D&I goals at BAT and ultimately, building a better tomorrow.“
Also speaking during the launch, Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) projects manager, Catherine Naserian, said FKE and KBDN, are pleased to partner with BAT to further their mission, which is to promote disability inclusion in the workspace.
She said KBDN members and BAT will have the benefit of best practice expertise on disability inclusion and gain access to a vast pool of qualified Persons with Disabilities candidates in addition to receiving recruitment support from KBDN.
Further, the company will access learning resources and training on how to effectively onboard and incorporate Persons with Disabilities into the workplace.
“On behalf of KBDN, I am delighted to welcome BAT Kenya on board. ”
Also present at the signing ceremony were representatives from the International Labour
Organization, the Federation of Kenya Employers and BAT employee representatives.
