About Nedbank Group

CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

Nedbank Group, generally regarded as South Africa’s ‘green bank’, has an enviable reputation for consistently demonstrating a sincere commitment to sustainability principles across its various operations. Sustainability considerations have formed part of our core focus for some 18 years – long before their importance became widely recognised within the broader business community. Over this period sustainability has become integral to our strategic objectives. It is fully incorporated into how we conduct business, shapes our risk management processes, is reflected in the policies that govern behaviour and conduct, and is included in the performance assessments of all our employees.

In fact, Nedbank Group has truly embraced sustainability in all its facets by placing environmental, social and ethical matters at the heart of its business. Our values, risk management and business processes underpin this strategic approach to sustainability and reflect our desire to preserve the future for all our stakeholders. We embrace sustainability, not just as an environmental or social issue, nor just as an element of governance or ethics, but rather as a means of bringing all these issues together into our business model to ensure the long-term growth of a successful business for the benefit of all.

Nedbank Group aims to be a responsible corporate citizen at all levels. Achieving this requires that we go beyond mere compliance. We therefore recognise that our group is in business to maximise shareholder value, while paying due regard to the social and environmental impact associated with doing so. Our corporate responsibility practices cover a range of employment issues that include: investing in human capital; ensuring that the human rights of employees are enshrined in our strategies, policies, procedures, processes and behaviour; actively promoting transformation and black economic empowerment; remaining absolutely committed to health and safety; and accepting environmental responsibility for the management of natural resources used in, or directly affected by, our businesses or financing decisions. Nedbank Group remains committed to the development of an engaged, progressive and high-performance culture that is underpinned by integrity and a clear code of ethics.

Nedbank actively engages with all its stakeholders to ensure long-term relationships based on principles of equitable treatment and trust. We are fully committed to understanding the needs and expectations of our clients and we take great care in examining the ongoing social and environmental impact experienced by our clients to ensure that we are in a position to respond to these in a way that consistently delivers mutual benefits.

Embracing our role in addressing climate change has been a central focus of our group in 2008. Nedbank acknowledges that the challenges of climate change extend beyond the environment and also impact the economic and social arenas. In promoting a sustainable agenda we hold ourselves accountable and have taken action to address climate change by setting reduction targets in respect of our energy, water and paper usage and travel so as to begin to minimise our carbon emissions and our impact on the environment.

Outside the group our sustainability practices extend to the local community and involve relationships with all our stakeholders. Nedbank Group is fully aware of its responsibility to Make Things Happen for the communities that support us and on which we have an impact. As a major banking group in a country in which sections of the community are beset by a lack of education, extreme poverty and ill health, we consider it both a duty and a privilege to help address these issues among disadvantaged communities.

Nedbank continues on its sustainability journey with conviction and commitment, believing that our continued success depends on our ability to share our success with others, enhancing their lives and leaving them better equipped to succeed themselves.

Dr Reuel Khoza
Chairman