Emirates NBD, a leading banking group, will structure and manage the UAE’s first sustainable Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), Masdar Green REIT, amounting to AED949 million ($258 million)

 

While committing Commitment to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI), the bank will focus on implementing sustainable practices, NBD said in its sixth Annual ESG Report (formerly Sustainability Report) detailing the organisations’ Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance and achievements in 2021.

 

The report has been prepared in accordance with the GRI Standards and aligned to the UAE Vision 2021 as well as the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). 

 

Key Highlights of Emirates NBD Group’s 2021 ESG report: 

 

Responsible Finance and Investment

*Sustainable debt and loan capital market transactions, 24 such transactions amounting to AED69 billion, led by Emirates NBD Capital (EmCap) in 2021;

*Introduced a Wealth Management Sustainable Investment Framework;

 

Environmental 

*Reduction of water consumption by 22%; 

*Reduction of energy consumption by 12% and achieved cost savings of AED3.7 million in 2021;

*4 LEED GOLD certified branches in the UAE; 

*First LEED GOLD certified bank branch in Saudi Arabia (Al Quds branch, Riyadh);

*ISO 14001:2015 certified for our environmental management system;

*6 LEED certified engineers in Facility Management.

 

Social 

*A diverse workforce of 9,825 full-time employees from 78 nationalities; 

*41% of Emirates NBD Group employees are women, with the target of 25% of senior roles being filled by women by 2027; 

*Improved flexibility for full-time employees through flexible working hours and increased parental leave; 

*902 volunteer deployments with an award-winning corporate volunteering programme;

*Over AED64 million in social contributions

 

Governance 

The Board of Directors is responsible for overseeing management and safeguarding the interests of our stakeholders. A number of committees have been allocated special responsibility by the Board. 

 

Additionally, fraud management, anti-bribery and anti-corruption policies, data security, whistleblower, business continuity, and crisis management policies are in place to ensure good governance and accountability. The code of conduct establishes the expectations for professional behaviour among all employees. 

 

Commenting on the announcement, Shayne Nelson, Group CEO, Emirates NBD said: “Emirates NBD is proud to present its sixth Annual ESG Report. Despite the challenges posed by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, 2021 was an eventful and rewarding year for the Group as we navigated the changing global economic landscape.”

 

He added: “As we look forward, we recognise both the challenges as well as the opportunities in integrating ESG into our business. With our long history of being an innovator and staying ahead of the curve as the industry changes, I am optimistic that we will be able to harness this strength to address the many challenges that we face as a global community. With continued, ongoing progress in our ESG agenda, we remain confident that we will move towards achieving our sustainability aspirations.”-- TradeArabia News Service