Gold Fields wins international award for best CSR policy
Gold Fields Ghana has been honoured for its contribution to the development of communities in which it operates.
The company's corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives have won it the 2014 Best Corporate Social Responsibility Policy in Africa.
The awards are initiatives of The New Economy, a UK-based quarterly print and digital magazine that looks at innovation, technology and how businesses are driving sustainability.
The magazine recognised Gold Fields Ghana’s commitment to CSR initiatives in host communities, and the company’s investment in several initiatives aimed at empowering and strengthening local communities.
It lauded Gold Fields Ghana for the setting up of a fund in 2002 to finance the company’s community investments.
It also acknowledged the company’s integration of community development into its strategic thinking.
"In 2004, Gold Fields became the first mining company in Ghana to set up a foundation, the Gold Fields Ghana Foundation, to fulfil the social development aspirations of its stakeholder communities.
“Today, social responsibility is a fully integrated component of the company’s operations and central to its business philosophy," the magazine said, urging the mining company to continue to do more to better the lots of its host and nearby communities.
The company, which operates the Tarkwa and Damang mines in the Western Region, currently donates one US dollar per ounce of gold produced to the foundation and additionally, 0.5 per cent of its annual pre-tax profit.
The company has to date invested over US$26 million in the development of its stakeholder communities, particularly in the areas of education, health, water and sanitation, agriculture and agribusiness, and infrastructure.
This, The New Economy said, was exemplary and informed the selection of the company as the 2014 Best Corporate Social Responsibility Policy in Africa.
Mr David Johnson, the Vice President & Head of Stakeholder Relations, West Africa, at Gold Fields Ghana, said the award was a recognition of the company's continuous efforts at ensuring that mining was done in a sustainable manner, with real benefits to host communities.
"Our goal is to be the global leader in sustainable gold mining and an award such as this reinforces our resolve and focus on delivering value to all our stakeholders, including our communities," Mr Johnson said in an interview.
On Gold Fields Ghana’s Shared Value initiatives, Mr Johnson said the company was looking at converting some of the by-products of the mines into useful resources for local industries.
“Our activities generate quite a bit of by-products, which can serve as raw materials for other industries. We are exploring all of that because there is great potential for increasing the value chain, generating local employment and stimulating growth in local economies,” he added.