Enjoy your drink, know when to stop
“You’re shloshed! No I’m not. At a Women’s Action for Development workshop last week, the responsible consuming of alcohol was the evening’s theme. Venessa Mwiya (far right), the Breweries’ Group Corporate Social Investment Coordinator, is opening another bottle to explain what a standard unit looks like. The WAD workshop was part of NBL’s DRINKiQ training programme.
NBL Managing Director, Wessie van der Westhuizen in his address said that the O&L Group was acutely aware of the social evil perpetrating the Namibian community. “While there is no easy solution to eliminate these evils, I strongly believe that through cooperation among all stakeholders, and through information and education sessions, we can shift mindsets in our society so that we set in motion a wave of positive change.”
Van der Westhuizen added that there seemed to be an escalation of horrid actions coupled to abuse that needed to be addressed as a matter of urgency. He advised that ‘fortunately in Namibia – as in the rest of the world – the vast majority of people, who enjoy alcoholic beverages, actually do so responsibly’. “Yet, the handful of individuals who choose to behave irresponsibly, often negatively impact numerous lives through their choices. Therefore, instead of only talking about the impacts of alcohol abuse, and speculating or pointing fingers, we need to understand the underlying causes fuelling this unacceptable wave of gender violence in our society, and take action”, he said.
