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Daily CSR
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Westpac Group Marks A Historical Milestone In Australia



11/27/2017

Westpac Group’s 200 years in business celebration synchronises with the end of its five year ‘sustainability strategy’.


Dailycsr.com – 27 November 2017 – In the history of Australia, the Westpac Group, created an “extraordinary milestone”, as it is the “first company” in the country who celebrated its two hundred years of business history.
 
Westpac has a history of set-backs and “significant growth”, whereby making the company more understanding the importance of “right decisions” taken today to create the tomorrow, while “continually” adapting oneself to “new and emerging opportunities and challenges”. In fact, it is the “tenth time” that company was mentioned as the “world’s most sustainable bank in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices”.
 
Furthermore, the “Sustainability Performance Report” for 2017 features a conclusive note of its “five-year 2013-17 Sustainability Strategy” providing “insights” into the company’s “performance across a series of social, environmental and economic indicators” along with “an analysis of the Group’s response to material issues”.
 
Here are the highlights of Westpac Group’s “2017 Sustainability Strategy performance” in “three” prior areas, as mentioned by 3blmedia:
Embracing societal change
  • Achieved our goal of 50% women in leadership roles by 2017.
  • Published our updated Human Rights Position Statement and 2020 Action Plan and released our first statement in response to the UK Modern Slavery Act.
  • St.George Bank accredited as Australia’s first dementia friendly bank by Dementia Australia.
  • Exceeded our 2015-2017 Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) commitment of recruiting 500 new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees by 2017, and directed our focus to retention and development in our 2018-2020 RAP.
Environmental solutions
  • Released our third Climate Change Position Statement and Action Plan, including a target for lending to climate change solutions of $10 billion by 2020 and $25 billion by 2030.
  • Increased the proportion of renewable energy financing from 45% to 65% between 2011 and 2017 in the total electricity generation portfolio.
  • Launched industry-first sustainability scoring capability to BT Panorama, showing how investments on the ASX200 and over 200 managed funds rate on environmental, social and governance factors.
  • Issued an offshore currency Climate Bond for US$50 million, a first among the Australian banks.
Better financial futures
  • Increased lending to the social and affordable housing sector to $1.32 billion.
  • Introduced a number of new products and services to meet the changing needs of customers, including Westpac Life and Bump savings accounts, and a new basic credit card, Westpac Lite, with an interest rate of 9.9%.
  • Released our first Financial Inclusion Action Plan, laying out our vision and guiding priorities for the next 12 months, including around the areas of crisis and hardship, understanding money and inclusive growth.
  • Made available close to $475,000 in microfinance loans with Many Rivers Microfinance to support Indigenous Australian business owners.
 
 
 
 
References:
reportalert.info