Our purpose is to drive Africa’s growth. We are committed to being more than a provider of financial products and services – we are a catalyst for economic change in our countries of operation and we make life better for our fellow Africans by doing the right business the right way.
On this page you will find an overview of Standard Bank and why we believe in ‘reporting to society’.
SEE moreAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
We are a financial services organisation in, for and across Africa.
We operate in 20 African countries and are headquartered in Johannesburg. Our primary listing is on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in South Africa, with a secondary listing in Namibia. Subsidiary banks are listed on exchanges in Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria and Uganda.
On this page:An account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
We publish several reports to provide our stakeholders with the information they need to assess our performance.
Our annual integrated report, our primary report, provides a holistic and material assessment of our ability to create value over time. It considers the issues material to maintaining the commercial viability and social relevance required to achieve our strategy in the medium to long term, and covers both our financial performance and material non-financial information.
Our reporting to society platform aims to communicate with a broad group of stakeholders about how we impact on the societies, economies and environments in which we operate.
SEE moreAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Standard Bank is driven by our purpose: ‘Africa is our home, we drive her growth.’ We are an African financial services organisation with a clear understanding of the challenges and opportunities in our countries of operation. We see it as our core job to develop commercially sound ways to address these challenges, thereby accelerating economic growth and human development and making a better life for our fellow Africans.
SEE moreAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
We recognise that we cannot achieve our purpose ‘Africa is our home, we drive her growth’ without our stakeholders. That’s why we engage with our stakeholders on a regular basis, to understand their concerns, build relationships, and develop partnerships.
On this page:An account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
We have a series of internal policies, procedures and controls
in place to ensure that accurate data is provided. Our group
social and ethics committee provided oversight of this report.
PricewaterhouseCoopers provided limited external assurance on
selected performance data in this report, indicated by
a , in accordance with the International Standard on Assurance
Engagements (ISAE 3000). The scope of the assurance
engagement and the statement of assurance are provided in
this section.
An account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
In 2017, we began our journey on impact reporting, identifying the areas of impact that our core business has on the societies in which we operate. Here you will find an overview of the progress made in 2018 in further refining our SEE impact areas.
SEE moreAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Our report is structured according to six areas in which we believed that Standard Bank could make a significant positive social, economic and environmental (SEE) impact.
On this page:An account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Accessible and convenient digital channels are essential to broaden and deepen financial inclusion across the continent. We’re keenly aware of our responsibility to ensure that our customers have a clear understanding of our products and services, and how to use them cost-effectively. We’re committed to partnering with our customers during difficult times, and endeavour to work with our customers to develop workable solutions when they find themselves struggling to repay their debt.
Summary Enabling home ownership to improve financial inclusion Digital solutions to improve access and affordability Cutting waiting times in branches to serve our customers better Helping customers make informed financial decisions through consumer education Helping our customers save, invest and plan for the future Our diverse transactional channels provide multiple ways to bank Protecting people’s wealth Generating revenues that drive economic growthAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Micro, small and medium enterprises are key drivers of economic growth and job creation across Africa. But many struggle to move from start-up businesses to sustainable firms with the potential to expand and employ others.
Summary Incubators and training Developing economic opportunities with fintech entrepreneurs in Africa Finance for entrepreneurs to grow their businesses Improving financial access with digital solutions for SMEs Helping businesses to thriveAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Standard Bank works with governments, development finance institutions and other commercial banks to structure and provide appropriate financial solutions to address Africa’s infrastructure gaps, with appropriate risk sharing arrangements.
Inadequate power, water, transport and telecommunications infrastructure inhibits Africa’s economic growth and potential for job creation and human development. The African Development Bank has estimated that Africa needs USD170 billion per year in infrastructure investment.
Summary Investing in renewable energy Financing transport infrastructure to boost trade Expanding telecommunications infrastructure Funding water infrastructure, an increasingly scarce resourceAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Africa’s growth depends on her people having access to quality education, and the promotion of skills training and lifelong learning opportunities in the context of the fourth industrial revolution.
Standard Bank supports this in various ways. We work with partners in the education and corporate sectors to address the challenge of affordable and accessible student finance, including through innovative models such as our Feenix crowd-funding platform in South Africa.
Summary Funding higher education for Africa’s youth Helping young people to enter the workplace Supporting quality schooling Supporting early childhood developmentAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Our purpose is to drive Africa’s growth. A core part of our business is to facilitate trade and investment flows between African countries, and between African countries and global markets.
We partner with international investors to connect them to opportunities in Africa, and with African governments, SOEs and businesses to facilitate their access to global capital markets. We helped raise over USD15 billion of finance for our African clients in 2018. We’re also working with African firms, and small enterprises in particular, to improve their access to trade finance.
Summary Expanding African trade to drive Africa’s growth Celebrating our 10-year partnership with ICBC: Growing Africa-China trade and investmentAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Standard Bank is a major employer in Africa, employing over 52 147 people. We encourage continuous learning and development to ensure our people are equipped to meet the demands of a rapidly changing, increasingly digital world of work. We invest in training and development at all levels, enabling us to build a strong succession pipeline of future leaders.
Summary Building and retaining local skills and capabilities in our countries of operations Investing in our people Preparing graduates for employment Preparing our people for the future world of workAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Standard Bank recognises that our core business activities must contribute to the prosperity and wellbeing of the societies and environment in which we operate. This understanding defines our purpose: Africa is our home. We drive her growth, and is supported by sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies and outcomes.
This report provides an overview of our ESG practices and performance for 2018.
SEE moreThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
Standard Bank is committed to doing the right business the right way, ensuring that our clients are treated fairly and consistently, that we adhere to global and national regulatory and governance standards, and that our decisions and actions are informed by the group’s values and ethics. As per South Africa’s King IV Code of Corporate Governance, we recognise that we are an integral part of the societies in which we operate, dependent on these societies for our licence to operate, and that we are therefore obligated, morally and legally, to act in accordance with what is good for these societies as well as what is good for the bank.
About this report Engaging our stakeholders and determining our material issues Material issues during the reporting period Our value drivers and our material issues What is our ‘SEE impact’ all about?This report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
The greatest impact we have as a financial institution is through our financial activities. We have developed a comprehensive framework which will ensure that the group proactively identifies, manages, monitors and embeds environmental and social (E&S) risk management into its lending processes. Standard Bank aims to drive Africa’s growth with minimal negative reputational, social, economic and environmental impact.
Managing E&S risks and opportunities Managing and mitigating indirect environmental and social risk Environmental and social management system Codes, standards and guidelines Climate change risk management Responsible finance Financial instruments to promote positive social and environmental impacts Human rightsThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
Climate change, coupled with the related issue of water scarcity, has emerged as a leading risk for business and society. SBG is working toward better understanding our environmental impacts and the impacts of climate change on our business. In 2018 we continued to invest in the reduction of our direct carbon footprint through energy and water monitoring and savings measures at our head offices and branches.
Our direct environmental performance Operational carbon footprint managementThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
We understand that to become the leading financial services organisation in, for and across Africa, we must contribute to the long-term prosperity of the communities and countries in which we operate, by facilitating inclusive economic growth and social development.
To do this effectively we must ensure our relevance to social needs and our capacity to help advance national objectives. Our vision commits us to contributing to socioeconomic development in a way that is consistent with the nature and size of our operations in the countries we serve.
Valuing our people Diversity and inclusion Growing our peopleThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
Africa’s growth depends on her people having access to quality education, and the promotion of skills training and lifelong learning opportunities in the context of the fourth industrial revolution.
Investing in communities Supporting early childhood development Supporting quality schoolingThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
The group social and ethics committee is responsible for ensuring that we act ethically in relation to internal and external stakeholders, and society more broadly.
The committee meets quarterly and includes executive and non-executive directors. Key issues discussed by the committee during 2018 included progress on embedding an ethical culture in Standard Bank; group-wide principles for stakeholder engagement; measures to accelerate gender and racial transformation within South Africa, and gender equity across the group; effectiveness of group policies and processes to minimise instances and support the victims of discrimination and sexual harassment; issues raised by environmental and social rights groups; and employee wellbeing.
Promoting sound governance and integrity Governance structures and accountability Our ethics and values Conduct risk management framework Oversight and assurance Political party fundingThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
We understand that responsible management of environment, health, safety and social responsibility issues is important to our growth, profitability and long-term success. This section provides a selection of our ESG performance data from 2016 – 2018.
On this page:
This report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Generic Verification Certificate
Download PDFThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
This section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes. The report is structured according to the elements of the Financial Sector Code and covers the initiatives, projects, and strategies that are in place to drive transformation.
SEE moreThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
Enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy aligns with our group social, economic and environmental (SEE) value driver which seeks to generate social, economic and environmental value for our stakeholders and society through our core business activities.
SEE moreThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
Standard Bank’s purpose is ‘Africa is our home, we drive her growth.’ Driving growth means an economy in which every South African, regardless of their race or gender or the social context, can access basic necessities; and an economy in which success and prosperity are the result of hard work and talent, rather than inherited privilege or personal connections. As a corporate citizen with a social responsibility, we are committed to supporting economic growth.
SEE moreThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
The report is structured according to the elements of the Financial Sector Code and covers the initiatives, projects, and strategies that are in place to drive transformation.
Standard Bank’s BEE Scorecard Ownership Management control Skills development Preferential procurement Socioeconomic development and consumer education Empowerment financing and enterprise and supplier development Access to financial servicesThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
More information about the ways in which Standard Bank is impacting on the economies and societies in which we operate.
SEE moreThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
As a bank with operations across Africa, we are aware of Africa’s
vulnerability to the negative impacts
of climate change. We are committed to balancing the need to meet
Africa’s energy and infrastructure
demands with the challenges posed by climate change and the need for a
just transition to a lowercarbon
economy over time.
In support of our commitment to drive inclusive and sustainable economic growth in Africa, and in line with our E&S risk governance standard, we are:
We are in the process of collecting and assessing data to develop a climate change strategy and embed consideration of climate related risks in our decision-making processes. This includes:
We will be analysing our data and portfolio to identify:
We consider physical and transitional risk in our portfolio and lending analysis. Transition/regulatory risks can have financial, reputational and community support impacts on a client’s operations. Risks include:
Water risk management
Water availability and security of
supply, water and related ecosystem pollution, and potential risks
related to changes in rainfall and water supply resulting from climate
change pose potential risks
in relation to lending and investment. We’re in the process of
developing a strategy to manage our
exposure to water-related risks. This will include:
During 2016 and 2017, much of East and Southern Africa suffered from severe drought. South Africa’s Western Cape was particularly hard hit, resulting in the looming approach of Day Zero, the day the taps would run dry in the city of Cape Town, in early 2018. While strict water management, concerted efforts by residents, and longawaited rains have delayed Day Zero, however, Cape Town remains a severely water-stressed city.
The municipality of Cape Town required an alternative feedstock for the production of potable water and given the city’s proximity to the Atlantic and Indian oceans, seawater desalination technology was selected.
Standard Bank provided finance for the installation of two desalination plants in Monwabisi and Strandfontein. This included a marine intake, onshore process plant, product injection and brine return pipeline. The plant was built in a modular format to enable future expansion. Both plants are currently running at capacity and each produces about 7 million litres of potable water per day. The plants will operate as a temporary solution to the city’s urgent water requirements. PROXA and Water Solutions SA, together with the city, collaborated with the local communities to promote job creation during the project construction phase. At the time of plant decommissioning the area will be rehabilitated, and the buildings used to house the plants could be converted to community halls or other facilities which will benefit the local communities.
This provision of financing for the desalination plants with revenue collected from the supply of water into the city’s existing reticulation system, assisted the city in meeting its emergency needs.
Standard Bank Group’s policy on financing new coal-fired power plants
The
policy and regulatory landscape regarding the responsibilities of financial
institutions in relation to environmental
impacts and climate change mitigation is evolving, while pressure from
investor activists and civil society organisations to
disinvest in polluting industries is simultaneously increasing. Our 2018 AGM
saw shareholders raise questions about our
position on financing coal-fired power stations, with a focus on proposed
new independent power producers in South Africa.
We have identified the risks associated with new investment in coal-fired
power stations, together with the importance of
adaptation and mitigation of climate change, especially in relation to water
in key sectors and markets, as an important
issue for Standard Bank. These issues received close attention from our
executives and board members during 2018. We
also continue to engage with a range of external stakeholders to understand
a broad range of perspectives and potential
impacts.
We recognise that, while coal is a major contributor of greenhouse gas emissions, it is also a critical component of the energy mix in certain African regions, and a source of affordable energy for underserved communities.
We have adopted a policy broadly in line with the OECD Export Credit Agency Coal-Fired Power Finance Guidelines, limiting the financing of coal-fired power generation depending on a country’s energy poverty, technology and size of plant. We undertake enhanced due diligence when assessing proposals for coal-fired generation, which involves an assessment of the current energy situation in the region and future energy demand, the proposed technology, alternative options, and compliance with national environmental and social laws, relevant international conventions, standards and treaties, IFC Performance Standards and Equator Principles, and IFC Industry Guidelines on thermal power plants, electrical power transmission and distribution. Our funding parameters set limitations on new build coal power stations. While funding is not excluded, the funding requirements for new coal power stations are based on geography, technology and size of power plant. If a proposed development does not meet our criteria, we will not provide finance. We also undertake post-finance monitoring on an ongoing basis in line with Standard Bank Group’s environmental and social policy.
Standard Bank works with its clients to advise on structure and arrange socially and environmentally responsible financial products. These include:
Investment in renewable energy
Standard Bank supports the
expansion of affordable renewable energy solutions across Africa. This
includes working with
governments, renewable energy companies and development finance institutions
to facilitate large-scale infrastructural
development. Over the past several years we have significantly increased the
proportion of our energy loan book
committed to green energy and decreased the proportion of finance committed
to fossil fuels.
Since 2012, we have financed the construction of new power projects to the value of USD2.77 billion in Africa. 86% of this funding was for renewable energy. Lending to fossil fuel power projects represented 14% of our investments (12% natural gas and 2% heavy fuel oil/thermal, 0% coal).
Cumulative green vs brown underwrite value of
energy
investments from 2012 – 2018
Jobs created from renewable energy investments in South Africa
Estimated jobs created from Standard Bank’s investments in South African renewable energy projects (2012 – 2018)
PV | CSP | Wind | Total | |||||||||||
Construction (direct) | 6 264 | 2 719 | 4 116 | 13 099 | ||||||||||
Construction (supplier) | 3 530 | 994 | 2 900 | 7 424 | ||||||||||
Construction total | 9 794 | 3 713 | 7 016 | 20 523 | ||||||||||
Operations (direct) | 673 | 117 | 715 | 1 505 | ||||||||||
Operations (supplier) | 113 | 13 | 45 | 171 | ||||||||||
Operations total | 786 | 130 | 760 | 1 676 | ||||||||||
Total jobs | 10 580 | 3 842 | 7 776 | 22 199 |
References
Macroeconomic assumptions from Department of Energy Integrated Energy Plan
Average capacity factors from statistics of utility-scale solar PV, wind and CSP in South Africa in 2017 by CSIR Energy Centre
Average household electricity consumption sourced from Exon Consulting – How much electricity does my home use, August 2016
Examples of projects financed in 2018 and the SEE impacts
Construction of three new photovoltaic (PV) projects (Dyason’s Klip 1, Dyason’s Klip 2, Sirius Solar PV) with an installed capacity of 75 MW each. All three projects are located adjacent to one another close to Upington in the Northern Cape province of South Africa.
*Carbon abatement calculated using project MWs and grid emission factor of 0.94t CO2e/MWh
Construction of the new Wesley 33 MW wind farm in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.
*Carbon abatement calculated using project MWs and grid emission factor of 0.94t CO2e/MWh
Construction of a new 102 MW wind farm in the Northern Cape, South Africa.
*Carbon abatement calculated using project MWs and grid emission factor of 0.94t CO2e/MWh
Construction of a new 37 MW photovoltaic (PV) power plant in Hardap, Namibia.
*Carbon abatement calculated using project MWs and grid emission factor of 0.94t CO2e/MWh
Construction of a new 75 MW PV plant located in the Northern Cape.
*Carbon abatement calculated using project MWs and grid emission factor of 0.94t CO2e/MWh
The construction of phase two of a nitrogenous fertiliser plant within the existing Indorama Eleme Petrochemical complex located in Port Harcourt Nigeria. This phase entails an ammonia plant, urea plant, and supporting infrastructure and utilities.
*Carbon abatement calculated using project MWs and grid emission factor of 0.94t CO2e/MWh
Standard Bank is working on further developing positive social and environmental instruments and products in the group, some of which include:
Green lines of credit/ investments: Standard Bank partners with green finance investors and development finance institutions (DFIs) for lines of credit that have lending criteria linked to green/climate change requirements.
Green, social, climate bonds: We’re working with clients to assist in structuring, asset approval and monitoring of green bonds.
Environmental rehabilitation guarantees: African countries are increasingly formalising requirements for environmental rehabilitation at the end of mine operation (planned and unscheduled closure). This has resulted in the tightening of financial provision requirements over the life of an operation to enable rehabilitation, and ongoing monitoring thereafter.
Working with businesses and households to implement small-scale green energy solutions
Standard
Bank assists our clients to adopt greener solutions for their homes and
businesses, for example:
Standard Bank works closely with our clients in the agricultural sector to help them to adapt to and mitigate the impacts of climate change. In 2016 and 2017, we reported on how we worked with agriculture clients in South Africa to reduce the financial burden created by the country’s severe drought conditions.
In 2018, we again identified distressed farmers early in the season and made pro-active plans to assist them. We needed to take a careful, tailored approach to each client, recognising that their circumstances differ widely. We spent time with each client to design solutions for their unique challenges. 72 distressed agriculture clients’ overdrafts were maintained and capital payments on term loans postponed, to service only interest due. This lowered cash-flow pressure for the farmers. We also engaged with our clients to discuss more sustainable farming practices, including rotation cropping and precision farming. We introduced multi-peril insurance, which covers a broad set of conditions, to lower the risk to farmers and the bank, which led to improved cash-flow monitoring.
Standard Bank amended our human rights statement in 2017 to ensure alignment with universal principles, including the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights. The process involved consultation with internal and external stakeholders. Human rights issues, including discrimination, child labour, forced or compulsory labour and the rights of indigenous people, are assessed as part of the screening and due diligence processes associated with financing. All employees are responsible for ensuring that Standard Bank demonstrates our commitment to human rights.
Standard Bank Group statement on human rights
In keeping
with our purpose, and our obligations as a responsible financial services
firm in, for and across Africa, Standard
Bank Group is committed to respecting the human rights of people involved in
and impacted by our business. This
statement aims to achieve a consistent approach to respecting human rights
across Standard Bank.
Human rights are the basic and universal rights that underpin each person’s inherent freedom, dignity and equality as outlined in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Labour Organisation Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. We have used these universal benchmarks as our starting point for defining human rights.
Our commitment to respecting human rights is embedded in our values and code of ethics and is fundamental to ensuring our legitimacy and reputation as a corporate citizen. While nation states have a primary responsibility to protect and promote human rights, we recognise that corporations are also obligated to respect human rights.
We take any adverse human rights impacts seriously. We seek to avoid human rights infringements and being complicit in the human rights infringements of other parties. Our commitment to respecting human rights is included in many of our policies and standards. In this way, we seek to integrate respect for human rights into our day-to-day operations and in the way we do business.
We acknowledge that this is a journey, one that may differ across our regions and countries based on the institutional and regulatory setting of each country where we operate. Where local legislation may conflict with Standard Bank’s statement on human rights, we will comply with the law while seeking, within our spheres of influence, to raise awareness of human rights and provide an example of good practice through our own conduct, while being mindful of the local context.
Due diligence and human rights
The Standard Bank Group exercises due diligence in deciding who we
do business with. This includes understanding the
potential human rights impacts of our business relationships,
purchasing, lending and investing.
Our policies require that, if any human rights risk is identified as a result of a client relationship, project, product or other client interaction, the issue should be referred to GESRF, or the group’s chief ethics officer, or reported via the whistleblowing hotline (depending on the nature of the issue). We are committed to taking appropriate steps where we discover, or are made aware, that we have caused or contributed to actual or perceived human rights abuses. This may include disciplinary action, exiting a particular business relationship, or constructive engagement with others to promote better practice.
Human rights in relation to our employees
Our
employees have the right to enjoy fair and just conditions of work.
Our commitment to respecting this right is reflected
in our human capital policies and practices, which are underpinned
by our values and code of ethics. While these policies do
not necessarily mention ‘human rights’ specifically, they
nonetheless promote human rights directly or indirectly and are
consistent with our human rights statement. Relevant policies
include:
Human rights in relation to procurement
Standard
Bank’s procurement policy commits us to ethical procurement. It
specifies that:
Grievance mechanisms and reporting
We currently do not have a formal grievance mechanism for
transaction related E&S concerns/issues. However, we actively
engage with our stakeholders, including human rights and
environmental organisations, and the relevant ombudsman. We
have an anonymous whistle-blowing hotline in place for employees, and employees are actively encouraged, through
regular communications, to report any behaviours or activities that may conflict with Standard Bank’s values and
ethics.