Zain KSA

Climate Impact & Sustainability Data (2022, 2023)

Reporting Period: 2022

Environmental Metrics

Total Carbon Emissions:1,062,860 tCO2e/year

Scope 1 Emissions:411,484 tCO2e/year

Scope 2 Emissions:651,376 tCO2e/year

Scope 3 Emissions:496,624 tCO2e/year

Renewable Energy Share:1.46%

Total Energy Consumption:1,116,686,186 KWh/year

ESG Focus Areas

Climate Change
Inclusion
Operating Responsibly
Generation Youth

Environmental Achievements

57 energy efficient solutions were installed with the aim to reduce emissions across all operations.
In 2022, there was marked improvement in transitioning towards Net-Zero due to the establishment of the Climate Action Committee among other initiatives.
Zain revised its emission reduction targets to reflect its commitment to SBTi.

Social Achievements

To commemorate Universal Children’s Day, Zain launched a three-year partnership with Child Helpline International to mobilize and facilitate child helplines across its footprint.
Zain launched the second phase of its annual Internet Monsters media campaign and achieved 7.2 million impressions across the company’s social media accounts.
384 undergraduate female students joined Women in Tech - the Group-wide mentorship program that aims to foster the development of women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
In partnership with IoT Kids, Zain Iraq supported the annual coders competition where 1,000 young people aged between 8-15 years developed digital and coding skills.
Zain Bahrain launched the first Sign Language Video Call Center for the deaf community in Bahrain aiming to reduce the communications gap.
Zain Sudan provided aid and shelter to 350 families in areas affected by floods, including Al Jazeera, Blue Nile, and River Nile.
250 participants attended the Zain Jordan Climate Change Hackathon in partnership with the Ministry of Environment, the UN Development Program (UNDP) and the UN World Food Program (WFP).
Zain Jordan introduced Project Arachnid, a Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) blocking mechanism in their networks.
Relaunched the annual Group-wide employee engagement survey, a 86% response Group-wide excluding Zain KSA as they have conducted their own employee engagement survey.
Exceeded its target for sign language training by upskilling 318 sale agents and employees across all operations

Governance Achievements

In 2022, the Board approved the Board Diversity Policy, which aims to promote diversity and inclusion at the Board level.
Zain established a governance structure that enables the Board to focus on key areas of responsibility that affect the long-term success of the business.
The company is keen to align its business values and strategy with the corporate sustainability strategy which includes social and economic needs while embedding responsible and ethical business practices into every activity carried out by the company.
The company developed its Whistleblowing policy, which sets out the guiding principles and procedures for reporting any misconduct to the designated authorities within the company so that corrective actions can be taken.

Climate Goals & Targets

Long-term Goals:

Net zero emissions by 2050

Medium-term Goals:

Achieve 85% of recharge transactions over digital by 2025
Equip 471,000 children and youth with digital literacy skills by 2025
Reach 891,000 unemployed youth by 2025 through training, developing skills, conducting workshops and mentorship opportunities

Short-term Goals:

Reduce water consumption
Address 40% of its customer base by 2025 (revised to 50%)
All marketing and communications to be disability inclusive by 2023
Launch core data bundles & packages for people with disabilities by 2023
Mentor 100 women university students studying STEM in each market

Environmental Challenges

Challenges encountered by the reactive mode of some regional regulatory bodies to adopting data security and data sovereignty frameworks already in place in other countries led to further complexity and slower adoption of needed frameworks.
Coupled with the necessary regulatory reforms, appropriate skills are required to effectively undertake digital transformation, which are in many respects not widely available in Zain’s markets.
This is further exacerbated by greater competitive employment landscape and employment priorities based on remuneration.
Operating in a region, highly dependent on fossil fuels coupled with subsidized energy prices, pose challenges when developing awareness strategies required for mindset change.
Sustainability challenges related to supply chain management are more pronounced with the local suppliers when compared with the international suppliers.
Historically across the region, approaches to local suppliers were more transactional in nature with a focus on financial KPIs, but as the development of sustainability awareness linked to capital markets and investors’ disclosure requirements, greater emphasis is being placed on impacts from supply chain management.
The slow progression of data privacy regulations and laws in the region.
Increased political instability and lockdowns in markets such as Iraq and Sudan.
The uncertainty coupled with inflation led to negative impacts on the general economic situation in those operations.
The cultural shift from traditional forms of customer engagement to digital continues to be an issue of concern as it requires a behavioral shift.
Aggressive and irrational price wars continue to be a challenge is some of Zain’s markets, impacting financial performance.

Mitigation Strategies

Zain set benchmarks with respect to existing laws, engaged in lobbying efforts with regulatory bodies at the Group and operational levels, and received consultancy guidance prior to regulations coming into effect.
Our approach in addressing these challenges has resulted in continuing in our development of the Work Force of the Future stream, developing flexible, contract- based employment, focusing on a new generation of digital savvy, well-educated graduates to tap into this talent pool.
The company also introduced temporary contracts that are project based as we were previously based solely on full-time contracts.
The company officially submitted its commitment to setting science-based targets to the Science Based Targets Initiatives (SBTi).
The company launched its first fully accessible campaign entitled #AwaysAccessible in collaboration with the GSMA’s Connected Societies and Digital Inclusion teams and Microsoft MENA on creating tips and tutorials on how to utilize accessibility features found in smartphones (Using GSMA’s Mobile Internet Skills Training Toolkit (MISTT)) and Microsoft Office.
Zain expanded an MoU with Child Helpline International (CHI) to facilitate child helplines across the company’s footprint.
Zain restructured the ICT solutions it provides by consolidating different streams of the business under a newly formed subsidiary, ZainTech.
Zain Group’s API platform was rebranded to Dizlee, representing the evolution of the company’s API program to a digital monetization ecosystem provider offering an appealing array of content and gaming services, direct billing, messaging, and digital authentication, among other services under a single platform.
Zain Kuwait collaborated with the Kuwait Blind Association to gather insights for the company’s data bundles catered to people with disabilities.
Zain has adopted a strategic approach, formulating benchmarks indicating the existing laws as a minimum.
In parallel, the company continues to lobby with regulatory bodies at either the Group or operating company level to engage with regulatory bodies in a proactive and productive manner.
The engagement process also entails receiving consultancy prior to the law coming into effect to ensure Zain is adequately prepared.
Lastly, Zain aligns to international best practices by engaging with entities such as the GSMA.
Zain continues to diversify its digital products and services, providing e-payments, e-education, gaming, and microinsurance.
Zain also redesigned its traditional data bundles to better fit the operating context, for example the introduction of the ‘Bikaifi’ service in Iraq, a dynamic data centric and voice bundle designed for prepaid customers.

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: 341 suppliers in 2022

Responsible Procurement

Supplier Code of Conduct
Zain Group Human Rights Policy Statement
Supplier Self-Assessment Questionnaire
Supplier Training Videos
Supplier Audit visits

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks

Rise in mean temperature
Increased severity and frequency of extreme weather events

Transition Risks

Increase in fuel and electricity tariffs

Opportunities

Increase in adoption of renewable energy source
Products and services: ability to diversify business activities to electronic channels

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: AA1000 Accountability Principles (AA1000AP) 2018, Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI) standards, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), United Nations Guiding Principles (UNGP) on Business and Human Rights Reporting Framework, ESG Reporting Guide published by Boursa Kuwait, United Nations Global Compact (UNGC)

Certifications: ISO 27001

Third-party Assurance: Ernst & Young (Al Aiban, Al Osaimi and Partners)

UN Sustainable Development Goals

Goal 7
Goal 13

Sustainable Products & Innovation

Dizlee platform
ZainTech
Zain Esports

Awards & Recognition

Best Employer in Kuwait
Best Telecom Brand in the Middle East
Best Telco Operator
Most Innovative Companies 2022
Best ICT Investment
Best Enhanced Service Provider
Best Corporate Governance Award 2022
Best Digital Service
Best Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Strategy
Best Women Development & Leadership Program
Ground-Breaking Products
Services and Innovative Collaborations and Partnerships
Best Middle Eastern 5G Standalone Network
Best Middle Eastern Cloud Provider
Best Middle Eastern CSR Initiative
Middle East CTO Merit Leader of the Year
Leading Carrier in DCB
Best Mobile Operator
Best Internet Service Provider
Best B2C and Marketplace Company
Best Telecom Company
Best Digital Transformation Telecom Company
Best Telecommunications Company in Sudan

Reporting Period: 2023

Environmental Metrics

Total Carbon Emissions:Not disclosed

Scope 1 Emissions:Not disclosed

Scope 2 Emissions:Not disclosed

Scope 3 Emissions:Not disclosed

Renewable Energy Share:Not disclosed

Total Energy Consumption:576,399,096 KWh

Water Consumption:9144 m3

Waste Generated:Not disclosed

Carbon Intensity:Not disclosed