KIPCO Sustainability Report 2021
The Way Forward: Embarking on a Sustainable Journey
Our Sustainability Report 2021 was developed and published as we at KIPCO embark on our new sustainable strategy. The report measures, assesses and discloses company data on a range of non-financial performance areas in the realms of sustainability and environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance, guided by the Global reporting initiative (GRI) standard. The reporting period spans from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021 and the report establishes a baseline for ESG performance across KIPCO. The report constitutes the following six sections that address various ESG elements collectively.
Section 1: Our Sustainable Operating Model
This section illustrates the governance framework across the organization. It demonstrates KIPCO’s strategic direction, which revolves around three main stakeholders: employees, customers and shareholders, with which it ensures continuous engagement and communication through different channels as presented in the report. KIPCO announces two strategic steps that are currently taking place; a merger with another entity and the development of a long-term incentive plan. KIPCO looks to formally integrate the ESG elements into its overall strategy. As per the materiality assessment conducted, the report highlights key material topics which were identified, prioritized by stakeholders and integrated into the report. We carried out this assessment through consultation and engagement sessions with internal and external stakeholders, which resulted in shortlisting 13 topics as the most significant and impactful to our stakeholders and ranked by materiality level using the materiality matrix tool. The topics are aligned with the GRI standards and principles, and with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), both being international frameworks. In addition, the topics were aligned with the New Kuwait Vision 2035 and Boursa Kuwait standards as selected national frameworks.
Section 2: Inclusive Workplace
This section sheds light on KIPCO’s efforts in fostering a safe, diverse and inclusive environment for all employees through safeguarding employees’ human and labor rights. It states a Zero Tolerance Policy against any form of discrimination and harassment. This applies within the organization and during the recruitment stage. This section showcases KIPCO’s workforce details in terms of numbers per year, gender diversity in all positions, nationalization rates and employee age ranges. As an outcome of this objective, KIPCO reports on its talent attraction, retention, turnover and development performance, which reflects employees’ satisfaction with their jobs and the willingness of prospects to join the team. On the other hand, talents are evaluated and compensated based on their performance in an approach described with numbers in this section. At the end of Section 2, workplace health is demonstrated, as KIPCO ensures that it offers a safe work environment that prioritizes and complies with standards and practices of occupational health and safety, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Section 3: Corporate Citizenship
This section reports on the community directions and social impact underlined by seven pillars, three main goals and six objectives. It explains how KIPCO ensures community engagement and communication through various channels such as social media and mobile applications, where the ALAAN app plays a critical role. This section emphasizes the efforts invested in the empowerment of women and youth through several initiatives and programs presented as case studies and examples. KIPCO transparently discloses its total CSR investment amounts into its individual programs, initiatives and charity, as well as some of its subsidiaries’ activities in this area.
Section 4: Responsible Business Practices
This section addresses sustainable practices and environmental impacts and performance. Since KIPCO’s operations are not industrial, its impacts and performance are indicated by its paper use and disposal intensity, plastic waste intensity and recycling, electronic waste generated and disposal mechanisms, as well as water and electricity consumption. Additionally, Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions of scopes 1, 2, and 3 are major indicators of the organization’s environmental impact and performance. While all of the above indicators are quantified and reported on in this section, it also showcases the Group’s sustainable investments of the subsidiaries in alignment with the SDGs and their sustainable procurement practices and plans.
Section 5: Sustainable Governance
This section discloses corporate governance details, including the roles and responsibilities of the CEO and Chairman, the committees, details about the Board of Directors (BoD) and management, compensation and remuneration matters, policies, shareholders’ rights, among others. KIPCO considers Governance to be the leading element related to its business operations, which involves overseeing strategy implementation. Section 5 promotes transparency by disclosing the above-mentioned details.
Section 6: Integrity and Accountability
This section aligns with the governance efforts of the company where the focus is on maintaining an ethical business model through the organization’s cultural values, Code of Conduct policies, zero-tolerance approach to non-compliance and whistle-blowing policies. The report further extends this topic by displaying KIPCO’s compliance policies to financial crime, conflict of interest, due diligence, and audit matters. Additionally, it demonstrates their risk management policies and strategic approaches toward financial and non-financial risks across KIPCO. Finally, this section discloses information related to technology and data protection and privacy mechanisms and policies as well as their data security culture and performance.
We encourage you to download our report for further details and to provide us with any feedback or inputs you may have.
For information and inquiries about sustainability, please contact: esg@kipco.com