What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2019 Sustainability Report SCB identified a range of material issues, such as corporate governance and risk management, customer experience, data governance and cyber security, responsible lending. Among these, promoting financial literacy for retail customers and the general public stands out as a key material issue for SCB.

Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.

Key stakeholder groups SCB engages with:

Stakeholder Group	Method of engagement
Customers	·      Customer relationship-building activity ·      Information sessions on SCB financial products and services ·      Providing financial advice and knowledge to customers through online media, branch network and other electronic channels ·      Customer satisfaction surveys through telephone, questionnaire and electronic channels ·      Complaint and service channels through Customer Centre, Branch network and SCB Easy app
Employees	·      Meetings and online channels for policy and news announcement ·      Employee meetings, seminars and CSR activities ·      Annual performance evaluation ·      Employment engagement survey ·      Employee development programme ·      Employee recognition programme ·      Employee hotline
Shareholders	·      Annual general meeting ·      Extraordinary general meeting ·      56-1 Report ·      Annual report (Form 56-2) ·      Press release ·      Quarterly financial report ·      Investor meeting/conference ·      Investor call ·      Equity analyst meeting ·      Global roadshow event
Society and Environment	·      Projects and initiatives by SCB and the Siam Commercial Bank Foundation ·      Community and social surveys ·      Community engagement activities
Regulators	·      Assign Compliance unit to serve as SCB’s regulatory liaison ·      Attend meetings and hearings on regulatory policies and guidance from relevant authorities ·      Attend forums on regulatory compliance ·      Seek feedback and guidance on regulatory compliance ·      Offer feedback on regulations through public hearings ·      Prepare and provide support for regulatory audit

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

To identify and prioritise material topics SCB engaged with selected groups of stakeholders through in-depth interviews to obtain suggestions, feedback and information on economic, social and environmental material topics.

What actions were taken by SCB to promote financial literacy for retail customers and the general public?

In its 2019 Sustainability Report SCB reports that it took the following actions for promoting financial literacy for retail customers and the general public:

• Developing and improving the SCB website
• SCB’s website has undergone constant development and improvement so as to become the information hub for SCB’s products and services as well as a conduit of financial knowledge for customers and website visitors. Here, SCB publishes articles on a wide variety of topics related to personal finance and business management which are easy to understand and relevant to day-to-day lives, such as tips for paying off mortgage quickly, credit card debt management, investment portfolio design, and marketing in the digital age, as well as creating motivation and success. These articles also weave in content on financial access and appropriate use of products and services to reinforce customers’ and the public’s understanding. Furthermore, SCB also promotes financial literacy by creating content in the form of articles, infographics, videos, or short-movies, and creating engagement in social media which have attracted a lot of interest and many followers.

• Partnering with Mahidol University to build financial management capabilities
• SCB has partnered with Mahidol University on the “Smart University” project under the “Digital Convergence University” concept to build financial management capabilities and help universities transition to the digital economy. This project seeks to build financial and investment foundation for university students and staff by enhancing skills, knowledge, and exposure to real experiences. Under this partnership, SCB and Mahidol University have worked together to create and develop the following initiatives:
  • “SCB Investment Lab”: The first virtual investment lab in Thailand that creates learning experiences with digital technology and virtual trading experiment.
  • “E-learning”: Mahidol platforms and apps featuring training from highly-regarded financial experts in various fields who not only educate but also motivate students.
  • “Mahidol Virtual Classroom Powered by SCB”: The first smart university classroom in Thailand featuring interactive teaching and learning among four university campuses, which are Salaya campus, Kanchanaburi campus, Nakhon Sawan campus, and Amnaj Chareon campus, to support borderless education between faculty members and students.
  • “We Mahidol App”: Mahidol’s official app that connects students and faculty members anywhere anytime to facilitate learning and lifestyle on campus with features such as class scheduling, attendance checking, event calendar, campus news and activities. Moreover, “We Mahidol App” also serves as a knowledge and communication hub and offers a payment function that works for both on-campus and off-campus stores to support the government agenda on a cashless society.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standard addressed in this case is: Disclosure 413-1 Operations with local community engagement, impact assessments, and development programs

Disclosure 413-1 Operations with local community engagement, impact assessments, and development programs does not correspond to any SDG.

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

• Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
• Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
• Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
• Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.
References:

1) This case study is based on published information by SCB, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original, please revert to the original on the Global Reporting Initiative’s Sustainability Disclosure Database at the link:

http://database.globalreporting.org/

2) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

Note to SCB: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2019 Environmental, Social & Governance Report Fifth Third identified a range of material issues, such as business ethics and responsible banking, customer privacy and information security, inclusion and diversity, employee engagement and development. Among these, promoting financial education stands out as a key material issue for Fifth Third.

Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards              

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.

Key stakeholder groups Fifth Third engages with:

Stakeholder Group	Method of engagement
Shareholders	·      Annual shareholder meeting ·      Quarterly earnings calls ·      Investor conferences and presentations ·      Meetings with investor relations team and executive management ·      SEC filings and dedicated investor relations website
Customers	·      Focus groups ·      Conversations through branch interactions and phone calls ·      Satisfaction surveys ·      Social media interactions ·      Customer helplines and corporate website
Employees	·      Engagement survey ·      Executive leadership communications ·      Learning programmes ·      Performance and development initiatives and corporate intranet
Communities	·      Community Advisory Forum (national and five statewide groups in Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Florida and North Carolina) ·      Community needs survey and assessments ·      Financial education and outreach programmes ·      Philanthropic investments ·      Civic memberships ·      Volunteerism and non-profit board engagement and corporate website
Regulators	·      Exams ·      Continuous monitoring and other meetings with senior management ·      Interactions through regulatory affairs and government affairs teams and regulator-sponsored events and initiatives

How stakeholder engagement was made to identify material issues

To identify and prioritise material topics, Fifth Third distributed a survey to representatives from its stakeholder groups.

What actions were taken by Fifth Third to promote financial education?

In its 2019 Environmental, Social & Governance Report Fifth Third reports that it took the following actions for promoting financial education:

• Launching the Fifth Third Bank Young Bankers Club
• The Fifth Third Bank Young Bankers Club (YBC) is Fifth Third’s signature programme developed in 2004 for fifth-graders. Over the past 15 years, more than 28,000 students graduated from YBC. Most were taught by Fifth Third volunteers who visited elementary school classrooms to teach the difference between needs and wants, money basics and to underscore the importance of their education. In 2019, the programme underwent an update and will transition into a newer, more dynamic programme in 2021 that will be more relevant to today’s students and better establish a strong financial foundation for the future.

• Supporting $martPath
• The Fifth Third Foundation has also supported $martPath, developed with the University of Cincinnati Economics Centre, for students from first grade through eighth grade. Since 2017, 430,200 students in Ohio, Florida and Michigan were educated through $martPath, an award-winning digital platform that uses animated characters and stories to impart critical thinking, math, economics and personal finance skills.

• Introducing the Fifth Third Finance Academy
• The Fifth Third Finance Academy offers two courses: foundational finance and entrepreneurship, to high school students throughout the Bank’s footprint states. The programme is focused on high-need students and schools, with over half of the students coming from underserved communities. In the 2018-19 school year, over 163,000 students completed more than 400,000 hours of learning through more than 2,200 Finance Academy courses. To date, more than 453,000 students have taken Finance Academy courses and completed over 1.1 million hours of learning. In the programme’s second year, Fifth Third reported a 73% learning gain in financial education and a 93% learning gain in entrepreneurship. In 2019, Fifth Third also offered Finance Academy to students at Florida A&M University, a public HBCU (Historically black colleges and universities) in Tallahassee. Fifth Third also provides $70,000 in scholarships each academic year to help students meet their education and career goals. At the end of the 2019-2020 academic year, this totalled $210,000 in scholarship awards. When schools were closed due to the lockdowns brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, Fifth Third worked to make all of its Finance Academy courses available for free to students throughout its Consumer Bank footprint—regardless of whether or not they were previously Finance Academy schools. This ensured that financial education could continue during the pandemic. Additionally, courses designed for adult learners, typically offered on Fifth Third’s eBus, were made available to the public at no cost, as was the NextJob Job Seeker’s Toolkit, job training services typically available only for Fifth Third customers.

• Offering Fifth Third Empower U
• Fifth Third’s financial education course for adults is called Fifth Third Empower U. These courses are taught by Fifth Third’s bankers on-site at various companies with Fifth Third’s community partners. They include a financial check-up, as well as classes that teach financial health, investments and planning, insurance planning, homeownership and college savings. Fifth Third has reached 123,000 people through the programme since 2012.

• Launching Retirement University
• Providing a holistic approach to retirement planning, Fifth Third’s Retirement University is a free educational programme to help consumers prepare for all aspects of retirement, from income needs to second careers. Lessons include planning and investments, retirement income, health care needs and life-stage planning. Fifth Third financial professionals also are available to answer attendees’ questions.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standard addressed in this case is: Disclosure 413-1 Operations with local community engagement, impact assessments, and development programs

Disclosure 413-1 Operations with local community engagement, impact assessments, and development programs does not correspond to any SDG.

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

• Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
• Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
• Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
• Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.
References:

1) This case study is based on published information by Fifth Third, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original, please revert to the original on the Global Reporting Initiative’s Sustainability Disclosure Database at the link:

http://database.globalreporting.org/

2) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

Note to Fifth Third: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2018 Sustainability Report SET identified a range of material issues, such as good corporate and capital market governance, sustainability risk management, developing the quality of listed companies, developing products, services and innovations for sustainability. Among these, promoting financial literacy stands out as a key material issue for SET.

Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards                        

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.

Key stakeholder groups SET engages with: 

To identify and prioritise material topics SET engaged with its stakeholders through the following channels:

Stakeholder Group	Method of engagement
Listed companies and Entrepreneurs	·      Develop an e-Listing (digital registration) system to reduce the steps, time, and costs of the registration process ·      Offer a variety of fundraising tools to match for business needs ·      Provide startups with fundraising channel, LiVE Platform ·      Develop listed company personnel through training courses, including CEO Networking, Strategic CFO in Capital Market, and investor relations development activities ·      Promote learning among entrepreneurs who are interested in listing on the Exchange through training activities, including the IPO Roadmap course ·      Enhance the quality of businesses by offering training and coaching activities and seminars to enhance their environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance ·      Implement the Regulatory Reform project to increase governance efficiency for listed companies ·      Promote communication between listed firms and investors through the quarterly “Opportunity Day” activity, through both online and offline channels ·      Build trust and communicate investment information through annual investment activities, including Thailand Focus and SET in The City
Intermediaries	·      Offer a modern trading system and post-trading services that cover all investment products ·      Develop a payment system for the capital market, FinNet, to reduce operating costs for intermediaries ·      Increase efficiency and reduce the process required for securities trading, such as through the T+2 Project, which shortens the securities clearing and settlement cycle to two instead of three working days ·      Develop a diverse range of products, including the CLMV Index, SETTHSI Index, Vietnam ETF, and TFEX Gold Online Futures ·      Implement the Regulatory Reform project to increase efficiency in the trading surveillance ·      Build trust and communicate investment information through annual investment activities, including Thailand Focus and SET in The City ·      Expand the base of quality investors through the INVESTNOW project ·      Develop knowledge standards and regularly assess the examination of securities professionals ·      Develop tools for securities professionals to access information on license renewals, such as the Prof. Link application
Investors	·      Develop convenient, timely, and efficient securities trading channels, including Settrade Streaming ·      Increase efficiency and reduce the processes required for securities trading, such as through the T+2 Project, which helps to reduce transaction costs for investors ·      Promote communication between listed companies and investors through the quarterly “Opportunity Day” activity, through both online and offline channels ·      Build trust and communicate investment information through annual investment activities, including Thailand Focus and SET in The City ·      Foster a regular investment culture (Dollar-Cost Averaging: DCA) through the INVESTNOW project ·      Promote investor knowledge through online and offline channels using the Investor Classroom project ·      Manage investment and capital market data using the SET Market Analysis and Reporting Tool (SETSMART)
Employees	·      Establish a Welfare Committee that includes employee representatives who participate in deliberations on employee welfare and benefits ·      Create an employee development plan for all employee levels by conducting onsite and offsite training activities ·      Promote health and well-being for employees, such as providing an exercise facility, a sports field, and other activities organized by clubs, run by employees ·      Support SET’s Employee Club to promote engagement between employees and management ·      Organize Town Hall activities on a quarterly basis to serve as a communication channel between management and employees ·      Conduct an employee engagement survey through the Little Voice, Great Value project
Regulators	·      Implement the Regulatory Reform project to increase efficiency in capital market governance ·      Promote engagement through meetings and hearing
Society	·      Organise monthly SET Talk activities to inform the press and media about the movements of the organisation and the capital market ·      Promote sources of learning on finance and investment through the Maruey Library and the INVESTORY museum ·      Set up the SET Social Impact Platform to serve as the centre for connecting the private sector, society, and social enterprises to collectively drive social change ·      Support and engage in social development through the SET Foundation

What actions were taken by SET to promote financial literacy?

In its 2018 Sustainability Report SET reports that it took the following actions for promoting financial literacy:

• Establishing the Investment Discovery Museum
• SET’s Investment Discovery Museum, which was developed with the concept of universal design, presents information on finance and investments in a ‘discovery museum’ format, which focuses on offering fun and engaging experiences for visitors through hands-on interactive exhibitions, such as games and stock simulation programmes. The Museum also tells the story of the historical development of the Thai capital market from past to present day. In 2018, the Museum welcomed over 48,000 visitors, a 19% increase from 2017, and carried out the following key activities:
  • Organised a special exhibition, “Saving through DCA”, to inspire and promote regular investments via Dollar-Cost Averaging (DCA). The exhibition focused on applying multimedia communications formats to allow visitors to revel in their learning experiences and to try their hands at planning DCAs.
  • Organised a mobile exhibition, “INVESTORY Mobile Exhibition on School”, to disseminate knowledge on finance and saving to educational institutions, by bringing information, technology, and some portions of the INVESTORY exhibits to 15 schools in Bangkok and the surrounding areas. More than 44,000 students participated in the activities.

• Creating the Maruey Library
• The Maruey Library is a finance and investment knowledge centre for the Thai capital market. For the library, SET has focused on developing a digital work system to handle services efficiently, including by providing a self-service system for borrowing and returning library resources using Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), digital bookshelves and digital content, and an online library service that facilitates the convenience for library users. More than 184,000 people used the library in 2018. SET has also developed the “Maruey eLibrary” application to allow users to easily access library resources including eBooks, eMagazines and multimedia anywhere, anytime.

• Promoting financial literacy for youth
• In 2018, to promote financial literacy for youth SET:
  • Organised the 10th Diamond Crown Economics Competition for school and university students to develop their basic skills and knowledge on economics, finance, insurance, and the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy. To date, there have been more than 43,000 students who participated in the Competition, and in 2018 it was attended by 5,810 students from 1,169 schools and 55 universities.
  • Supported financial and investment knowledge-building for teachers in 101 educational institutions throughout Thailand through the SET University Networking Project, and supported the SET-eLearning online courses on finance and investment planning, to be used as accompanying materials for teaching and learning.

• Promoting financial literacy for retirement
• Promoting a better understanding of efficient financial planning for retirement among over 40 million working age individuals would help to mitigate the impacts of an ageing society, reduce their reliance on government services, reduce financial inequalities, and ultimately enhance Thailand’s qualities of life and economic prosperity. SET has found that the minimum amount of money that Thai people should save for their retirement is 4.36 million baht. However, up to 63% of the working population are not in the retirement savings system, and thus there is a possibility that they will not have enough money for use once they retire. In consideration of this problem, SET launched the Happy Money, Happy Retirement Project, to build financial planning disciplines for workers in formal and informal economies, including the underprivileged and elderly. The project, with a central concept of “Happy Retirement is Achievable”, disseminated financial planning information and related tools in an easy-to-understand manner through online and offline channels, to stimulate inspiration for real-life application. In 2018, SET partnered with various national organisations to expand the benefits of the Happy Money, Happy Retirement Project to working people across Thailand. Key achievements were as follows:
  • Spread knowledge on financial planning for the formal labour force through training seminars, including a seminar on saving through provident funds (PVD) and retirement mutual funds (RMF). A total of 327 organisations from the public and private sector as well as state-owned enterprises participated in the project. This increased by 131 organisations from 2017 and covered over 831,000 workers in the formal workforce, a 23% increase in participation from 2017. Overall, employees of these organisations were helped to reduce liability and increase their savings.
  • Spread knowledge to the informal labour force, the underprivileged, and elderly through financial planning training, which was attended by over 2,963 interested individuals. In addition, SET partnered with the Thai Health Promotion Foundation to develop a model “Happy Money” community at Phra Pradaeng district, Samut Prakan province. This involved developing the “Financial Satisfaction” Manual for the informal labour force and providing trainings to community leaders so that they can become “Happy Money Mentors” in their own communities. Moreover, SET collaborated with The Thai Bankers’ Association and The Thai Red Cross Society to launch the “Happy Money Trainer” project for disabled groups.
  • Communicated knowledge on financial planning through online and offline public communications channels; the Happy Money, Happy Retirement Project website had over 6.2 million views.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standard addressed in this case is: Disclosure 413-1 Operations with local community engagement, impact assessments, and development programs

Disclosure 413-1 Operations with local community engagement, impact assessments, and development programs does not correspond to any SDG.

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

• Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
• Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
• Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
• Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.
References:

1) This case study is based on published information by SET, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original, please revert to the original on the Global Reporting Initiative’s Sustainability Disclosure Database at the link:

http://database.globalreporting.org/

2) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

Note to SET: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.

What are the material issues the company has identified?

In its 2019 Sustainability Report Arab Bank identified a range of material issues, such as legal and regulatory compliance, governance, accountability and transparency, customer experience and satisfaction, ethical conduct, information security and data privacy, talent attraction and retention. Among these, promoting financial inclusion and literacy stands out as a key material issue for Arab Bank.

Stakeholder engagement in accordance with the GRI Standards              

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) defines the Principle of Stakeholder Inclusiveness when identifying material issues (or a company’s most important impacts) as follows:

“The reporting organization shall identify its stakeholders, and explain how it has responded to their reasonable expectations and interests.”

Stakeholders must be consulted in the process of identifying a company’s most important impacts and their reasonable expectations and interests must be taken into account. This is an important cornerstone for CSR / sustainability reporting done responsibly.

Key stakeholder groups Arab Bank engages with:

To identify and prioritise material topics Arab Bank engaged with its stakeholders through the following channels:

Stakeholder Group	Method of engagement
Customers	·      Service & Communication Channels ·      Feedback Methods ·      Regular Annual Reports ·      Media
Shareholders	·      Annual General Assembly ·      Financial and Non-Financial Reports
Government	·      Regulatory Reporting and Audits ·      Regulatory Review ·      Regulations
Community	·      Social and Digital Media ·      Regular Annual Reports ·      Media ·      CSR Activities & Initiatives
Suppliers	·      Meetings ·      Contracts
The environment	·      Engaging with Clients & Borrowers on ESG Issues ·      Engaging with Environmental NGOs ·      Sustainability Reports
Employees	·      Internal Communication Channels ·      Volunteering Activities

What actions were taken by Arab Bank to promote financial inclusion and literacy?

In its 2019 Sustainability Report Arab Bank reports that it took the following actions for promoting financial inclusion and literacy:

• Implementing the “Shabab” programme
• Through its “Shabab” programme, Arab Bank provides the youth with financial services that are not usually offered to them and with an exceptional early banking experience, through the programme’s lifestyle and financial benefits. Additionally, Arab Bank offers to students working in part-time jobs first jobbers’ access to credit facilities at preferential terms.

• Using the “Jomopay” mobile payment system
• Arab Bank has included the Central Bank of Jordan’s mobile payment system “Jomopay” within its mobile banking service “Arabi Mobile”. By participating in this service, Arab Bank widened the reach of its customers’ remittances to all users with Jomopay wallets, reducing the dependency on physical cash and providing the unbanked with access to its wide base of customers.

• Investing in the sustainable development of local communities
• Arab Bank invested JOD 148,000, in cooperation with the Jordan River Foundation (JRF), in the sustainable development of local communities. This investment provided selected Community Based Organisations (CBOs) in the governorates of Ma’an and Zarqa with revolving loan funds to promote economic opportunities and entrepreneurship in poor communities, by facilitating access to finance. Implemented by JRF, the revolving loans programme grants loans to community members through CBOs that are carefully selected and undergo screening and extensive capacity building, to enable them to manage their own revolving loan portfolio in a sustainable way. Since 2011, approximately 320 individuals have benefitted from the revolving loans, with almost 63% of them being females.

• Supporting the national financial educational programme
• Arab Bank supports the national financial educational programme, initiated by the Central Bank of Jordan, to increase financial literacy among school students and teach them how to develop smart saving habits and make sound financial decisions. Arab Bank also supported this initiative through the Abdul Hameed Shoman Foundation (AHSF). The programme is intended to bridge the gap between financial knowledge and behaviour, acquainting students with basic economic and financial concepts.

• Sponsoring social financial literacy programmes
• Believing that financial literacy starts at a young age, Arab Bank has embarked upon several sponsorships targeting children in cooperation with various NGOs. In 2019, Arab Bank supported “The Arts of Saving” programme with Haya Cultural Centre. Through this programme, children were taught the art of saving money and managing budgets through creative and interactive activities. More than 1,800 children across the Kingdom were reached.

Which GRI Standards and corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been addressed?

The GRI Standard addressed in this case is:  Disclosure 203-1 Infrastructure investments and services supported

Disclosure 203-1 Infrastructure investments and services supported corresponds to:

• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5: Gender Equality
• Targets: 5.4
• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
• Targets: 9.1, 9.4
• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
• Targets: 11.2

 

78% of the world’s 250 largest companies report in accordance with the GRI Standards

SustainCase was primarily created to demonstrate, through case studies, the importance of dealing with a company’s most important impacts in a structured way, with use of the GRI Standards. To show how today’s best-run companies are achieving economic, social and environmental success – and how you can too.

Research by well-recognised institutions is clearly proving that responsible companies can look to the future with optimism.

7 GRI sustainability disclosures get you started

Any size business can start taking sustainability action

GRI, ISEP, CPD Certified Sustainability courses (2-5 days): Live Online or Classroom  (venue: London School of Economics)

• Exclusive FBRH template to begin reporting from day one
• Identify your most important impacts on the Environment, Economy and People
• Formulate in group exercises your plan for action. Begin taking solid, focused, all-round sustainability action ASAP. 
• Benchmarking methodology to set you on a path of continuous improvement

See upcoming training dates.
References:

1) This case study is based on published information by Arab Bank, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original, please revert to the original on the Global Reporting Initiative’s Sustainability Disclosure Database at the link:

http://database.globalreporting.org/

2) https://www.globalreporting.org/standards/gri-standards-download-center/

Note to Arab Bank: With each case study we send out an email requesting a comment on this case study. If you have not received such an email please contact us.