[Dhaka, 4th March 2025] Unilever Bangladesh Limited (UBL), the country’s leading Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) company, has launched Bangladesh’s first-ever life insurance coverage for waste workers of Unilever’s plastic waste management project in Chattogram. Partnering with MetLife Bangladesh and YPSA (Young Power in Social Action), this historic initiative will effectively improve livelihoods by providing essential group life insurance benefits. By working closely with partners to integrate waste workers in this initiative, UBL is setting a new benchmark for reducing inequality and enabling secure, dignified and fair working opportunities.

Sheikh Mohammad Tauhidul Islam, Chief Executive Officer of Chattogram City Corporation; Zaved Akhtar, Chairman and Managing Director of UBL; Ala Ahmad, Chief Executive Officer of MetLife Bangladesh; Md. Arifur Rahman, Chief Executive of YPSA;  Shamima Akhter, Director – Corporate Affairs, Partnerships & Communications at UBL;
and Md Kamruzzaman, Director and Head of Employee Benefits, MetLife Bangladesh were present at the agreement signing ceremony, along with other high officials from the participating organizations. 

Waste workers under UBL’s initiative will receive life and health insurance coverage, ensuring financial stability for them and their families. Eligible workers can receive up to 150,000 BDT in coverage based on specific circumstances, with financial benefits reaching 100% of the insured sum for certain physiological conditions. This initiative fosters security, enabling a more confident, stable, and prosperous livelihood.  

Moreover, waste workers under UBL’s initiative will receive medical expense reimbursement due to accidents, covering reasonable, customary, and necessary medical expenses. This includes physician treatment, Hospital charges, and nurses' fees, ensuring continuous health security and financial relief for a more stable and protected livelihood.

Sheikh Mohammad Tauhidul Islam, Chief Executive Officer, Chattogram City Corporation, said, "Like many other rapidly urbanizing cities in Bangladesh, Chattogram faces substantial environmental stress due to waste generation and management challenges. It is crucial to have partners who can drive meaningful interventions in environmental sustainability, aligning with the government’s long-term vision for collaborative action. I thank Unilever Bangladesh for its disruptive approach in creating sustainable living conditions for waste workers, who put in their best efforts every day to achieve our collective goal of building a better Bangladesh."

Zaved Akhtar, Chairman and Managing Director, UBL, said, “We are proactively working to improve Bangladesh’s plastic waste management in collaboration with our value chain actors, where waste workers play a crucial on-ground role. However, building an intelligent and scalable solution for a plastic circular economy largely depends on how we motivate and provide decent living opportunities for these value chain workers and their families within our overarching goal. Today’s historic partnership reflects our ambition to enhance decent livelihoods across our value chain. We recognise that what is good for Bangladesh is also good for Unilever. With this innovative, first-ever insurance scheme, we are driving meaningful change in the communities we serve—reducing inequality, ensuring secure working opportunities, and improving the overall quality of life.”

Ala Ahmad, Chief Executive Officer, MetLife Bangladesh, said, “We are delighted to partner with UBL and YPSA, as this industry-leading initiative highlights the importance of insurance in building stronger communities. Our longstanding experience of serving around 10 lakh individual customers and 900 corporate clients has enabled us to develop the insurance solution that not only improves the livelihood of waste workers but also provides them assurance to build a confident future.”

Md. Arifur Rahman Chief Executive YPSA, said, "YPSA has worked for this plastic waste management project in Chattogram since 2022, and waste workers have always been at the heart of our efforts. Through our partnership with Unilever Bangladesh, we are not only improving plastic waste management but also securing a better future for waste workers and their families. The insurance coverage introduced under this initiative ensures financial stability, safer working conditions, and long-term economic security. This collaboration will collectively empower the waste workers, giving them a future of potential and prosperity."

Unilever Bangladesh, in a multi-stakeholder partnership, launched a plastic waste management project in Chattogram in 2022, aiming to collect more plastic than it sells. Since 2022, it has collected over 21750 tonnes of plastic waste and upskilled over 3000 waste workers, improving their livelihoods. Expanding its impact, the innovative project now targets 10% of Chattogram’s plastic waste, strengthening more than 5,000 waste workers' socioeconomic well-being.