Social projects with focus on water
Geberit aims to achieve sustained improvement in the quality of people’s lives through innovative solutions in sanitary technology – including in developing regions. This is why it supports social projects each year that exhibit a relationship to the topic of water as well as to Geberit’s core competencies and corporate culture. The social projects also play an important role in the area of training. Working on these projects provides Geberit apprentices with the opportunity to develop abilities and social skills that aid their personal and professional development. At the same time, social commitment also contributes to the implementation of the Millennium Development Goal of the United Nations, which has the aim of providing people worldwide with access to clean drinking water and basic sanitation.
Targeted aid throughout the world
In 2014, Geberit supported a project in the northern Indian city of Varanasi. The Kiran village, established by a Swiss nun, is a training center with boarding school for around 360 children and young people. In addition to schooling, the village offers apprenticeship positions in the area of horticulture, carpentry and tailoring, as well as in the village’s own orthopedic workshop. The majority of the toilet facilities in the Kiran Village were in very poor condition. A Geberit Team comprising eight apprentices and two supervisors renovated these facilities during their two-week stay. They were supported by the employees from the village and a Geberit employee from India, who now also takes care of the maintenance of the newly renovated facilities.
The partnership with the Swiss development organization Helvetas was continued. In addition to its ongoing commitments, 2014 saw Geberit initiate a corporate volunteering project for its employees at the Rapperswil-Jona site. In 2015, 16 employees drawn from a hat will travel to Nepal for two weeks in order to actively take part in ongoing infrastructure, training and structural projects in the WARM (Water Resources Management) project.
The cooperation with the non-profit organization Swiss Water Partnership was continued in the reporting year. The goal of this platform is to bring together all those involved in the topic of water supply (from academic, economic as well as public and private spheres) to collectively address future challenges in this area and promote international dialog on water.
Geberit once again made financial contributions to diverse social projects in the reporting year, including a substantial donation to LIV, a South African organization that provides care and shelter for orphans in purpose-built villages.
As a basic principle, all social projects and the use of funds are regularly checked by Geberit employees in the respective country or in partnership with non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
For an overview of donations and financial contributions, see Investments in infrastructure and services primarily for public benefit. All of Geberit’s donations and related commitments are neutral from a party political point of view. Furthermore, no donations were made to parties or politicians. As a rule, no political statements are made and no political lobbying is carried out. This is ensured globally as part of the annual audit of the Code of Conduct.