4 December 2019
On November 28, 2019 annual public hearings of socially responsible companies were held in Minsk for the second time.
Public hearings were organized by the fund “Dobra” in partnership with “Belarusbank” and were attended by representatives of business companies, government agencies and international organizations. After all, corporate social responsibility implies partnership of business, government and society, as well as the introduction of sustainable development strategy in each organization.
The participants of the public hearings discussed why it is beneficial for companies to participate in resolving social issues, which in turn will help accelerate the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals.
Alexander Skrabovsky, Director of the fund “Dobra” and Coordinator of the Sustainable Development Partnership Group for Business Interaction, drew attention to the need for innovative approaches that would allow both doing things important for society and earning money. Social responsibility is a guarantee of the company’s prestige and stable growth. “World practice shows that socially responsible business grows faster. And in the future consumers will increasingly demand socially responsible behavior from companies,” he said.
Among the successful projects that were presented at the public hearings were projects in the field of animal protection and ecology, medicine and education. These are, for example, “Teacher for Belarus” (supported by BPS-Sberbank), the project “Senior Specialist” (ADEL chain of pharmacies), the opening of family-type orphanages and training of cashiers in sign language (Belarusbank) and others.
Also, a year ago the fund “Dobra” announced the emergence of an index, which will assess the corporate sustainability and responsibility of Belarusian companies. The index is a digital indicator, which is designed to assess and self-evaluate the company’s activities in the field of sustainable development and corporate social responsibility. Companies are assessed on four groups of criteria: labor relations and human rights, good business practices, consumers and participation in community life, and environment. A total of 134 indicators are presented. Based on the survey results, each company is assigned a social sustainability and responsibility index – a figure from 0 to 12. 23 Belarusian companies have already passed the assessment.
For their long-term contribution to the sustainable development of the Republic of Belarus, Belgazprombank, Belarusbank, and the Adaani Company were awarded the National Coordinator for Sustainable Development Goals Marianna Shchetkina and the fund “Dobra”. Another five representatives of the business community were awarded for new responsible business practices in Belarus.
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