By Dele Ogbodo in Abuja
The Managing Director, of Guinness Nigeria Plc, Mr. Peter Ndegwa and the Director General of the National Youth Service Corps NYSC, Brigadier Sule Kazaure, yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), to deepen the culture of responsible drinking among the youths and the Nigeria populace.
At the signing ceremony in Abuja, Ndegwa, who was represented by the Director of Social and Corporate Projects, Mr. Sesan Adebowale, said Guinness was committed to creating awareness on responsible drinking, while promoting the nourishment of the brand as part of a healthy balanced lifestyle.
While explaining that alcohol was not an ordinary drink, he stressed that its consumption therefore, must be done in moderate manner to enhance a balanced lifestyles in social occasion.
The MD said: “Guinness is also aware that misuse of alcohol can cause serious problems for the individuals and the society and this is why we have used a variety of programmers to promote a culture for adult for those who chose to drink so that they can do so responsibly.
“We have worked in partnership with government, NGOs and other companies to tackle alcohol misuse, drinking while driving and under-age drinking. We have also painstakingly taken measures to ensure that Guinness products are advertised and marketed responsibly before they are taken into the market.”
According to him, the DrinkIQ, is one of the training platforms being deployed by the company to staffers of members of NYSC to train the corps members on the imperative to deepen the responsible drinking campaign at the grass root.
Ndegwa said: “DrinkIQ is a training that hopes to raise awareness about alcohol consumption, so that people understand their drinking choices that they make, including the decision not to drink and when to drink and how much to drink.”
According to him, efforts to reduce the misuse of alcohol would be most effective when government, families, CSOs and industry players worked together to guide consumers with appropriate information to promote rigorous industrial standard for responsible marketing of alcohol drinks.
In a remark, the DG, who was represented by the Director, Community Development and Social Development, Mrs. Rhoda Akwaji, said the DrinkIQ campaign was apt when considered against the background that the society was full of men and women who drink to stupor.
The DG said: “Some in such state are knocked down by vehicles, homes are destroyed, jobs and man hours lost as well as development of major killer diseases such as liver cirrhosis resulting in the untimely death of many.”
According to him, the DrinkIQ campaign was therefore a give-back to the society initiated by Guinness Nigeria and to be implemented by community development which was bound to impact on the Corps members and the society.
