The Sunday Mail
Alexandra Mliswa
OUR world today is facing many problems.
The news today is full of stories relating to climate change, income inequality and social injustices.
While it cannot be said that increased economic activity is the sole contributor to these problems, it has definitely had its hand in some of these issues.
However, through sustainable business practices (SBPs), the corporate world can be part of the solution.
SBPs have the overall objective of minimising the negative impact that businesses can have on humans and the natural environment. Some examples of SBPs include a policy to purchase only energy efficient products, the exclusive use of renewable energy, partnering with employees or communities to empower them among many others.
We live in a new world of sustainability, which we hear about when talking about the products we should buy, how to live our lives and how businesses should be run.
But what do we mean when we talk about sustainable business?
In general, sustainability means to meet present needs without jeopardising the future generation’s ability to meet its needs.
For a business to be called sustainable it should be economically viable, socially responsible and environmentally friendly.
To achieve this, sustainability should not be an afterthought, but must be woven into a business’ overall strategy.
Sustainability has become so important that some countries and regional economic blocs (RECs) have made sustainable reporting a legal requirement for listed companies.
Governments have also begun offering tax incentives for companies that operate sustainably or have high sustainability ratings, often measured through ESG (environmental, social, and governance) ratings.
Investors too, now prefer to invest in businesses that have high ESG ratings.
So why aren’t all businesses implementing SBPs?
Sustainable business practices can be expensive and difficult to implement anywhere in the world.
While mandating Zimbabwean businesses to increase their use of energy efficient products or the exclusive use of renewable energy would not be financially viable for many of them, there are still some SBPs that Zimbabwean businesses (both big and small) can implement.
Businesses can develop sustainability policies and procedures such as going “paperless”, powering down machines after a certain time or developing a recycling programme.
Businesses can also partner with non-profit organisations which have the resources and expertise necessary to assist with their sustainability efforts. Before considering a complete overhaul of their entire business strategies, larger companies could first consider incorporating sustainability through their CSR (corporate social responsibility) strategies.
While CSR does not focus entirely on sustainability, there is space for sustainability in its broad scope, seeing as the objective of CSR is minimising the negative impact that business operations have on their operating environment, companies can adopt and implement CSR strategies which focus on SBPs.
Businesses can also practice internal CSR by partnering with employees on sustainability by providing training programmes as well as incentives for sustainability.
An article in the Stanford Social Innovation Review reported that companies with high sustainability rankings have shown a lower employee turnover as well as holistically better employee welfare than those that rank lower.
For many businesses looking to make a profit, you might have guessed that “saving the planet” and “making employees happier” is not a good enough reason to implement SBPs and neither is sustainability for sustainability’s sake.
For businesses operating in Zimbabwe, implementing SBPs can help protect and build your business’ image and can help you get a competitive advantage by attracting investors who look at ESG ratings. Other countries offer various benefits not limited to tax breaks and tax holidays for companies with high or improved ESG ratings.
Alexandra Mliswa practices and specialises CSR in the Zimbabwean extractive industry. She holds an LLB, BA and completing an MSc in Peace, leadership and conflict resolution.
