As ESG has taken hold, there has been a big focus on the environmental side of the matrix, most notably in areas like green and renewable energy. The social side is more nuanced, and, in many cases, it has been relegated to citizenship and feel-good initiatives rather than a broader understanding of social impact. It is important that we don’t confuse this with charity and donations – but rather long-term corporate sustainability.
The six drivers identified include: brand differentiation, talent attraction and retention, innovation, operational efficiency, risk mitigation and capital access and market valuation. By using this approach, Deloitte found that corporations can identify concrete measures around both the social and business value of each of the six drivers.
We have focused on overcoming the notion that the “S” is more of an individual project at an employee level or citizenship eventsthere is an imperative to bring our participation as a bank in the aspects related to social, to the forefront of how we do business. This encompasses financial inclusion, supply chain and SME support, gender equality financing, and youth empowerment.