Staff Writer
British American Tobacco Zimbabwe (BAT) says it has refreshed its sustainability agenda to reflect the changing external environment.
The cigarette manufacturer says it remains clear that reducing the health impact of its business is the principal focus area as well as placing a greater emphasis on the importance of addressing climate change and environmental management.
At the same time, the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange-listed firm said it remains committed to delivering a positive social impact and ensuring robust corporate governance across the group.
“Our sustainability agenda is integral to our evolved group strategy. It reflects our commitment to reducing the health impact of our business as our principal focus area. This is underpinned by excellence across our environmental, social and governance (ESG) priorities,” BAT’s chairman Lovemore Manatsa said in a statement accompanying financials for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Manatsa said the group’s key strength of approach to sustainability is a robust process to identify and understand the most material ESG topics that drive its long-term business sustainability and value creation.
“Each year we engage with a wide range of stakeholders to understand what matters to them most and complement this with ongoing risk monitoring research and benchmarking,” he said.
BAT recorded a 147 percent and 101 percent growth in revenue and profit before tax respectively during the year ended December 31, 2023 despite a challenging economic environment.