Abraaj Capital, a leading private equity and alternative asset management group in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia (Menasa), has issued its first integrated sustainability report.

In keeping with international best practice, Abraaj Capital’s integrated sustainability report provides depth and context to the group’s performance in 2010 and identifies how sustainability is central to the group’s culture and business.

The report was prepared using the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) G3 guidelines and evaluates the progress Abraaj Capital has achieved on its economic, social and environmental commitments in 2010. The report has been assessed as application level B+ from GRI and received a limited assurance statement from KPMG.

Abraaj Capital believes that by embedding sustainability management into its business and adopting global best practice environmental, social and governance principles (ESG), it is possible to enhance long-term value creation for investors, shareholders and wider stakeholders.

Abraaj Capital has refined its sustainability initiatives to include social investing, transparency and good governance, and environmental stewardship as pillars of its strategy.

“We are very pleased to publish our first integrated sustainability report which highlights Abraaj Capital’s commitment to incorporating sustainability principles into the core of our business. We believe that private equity groups like Abraaj Capital can and should play a pivotal role in highlighting the long-term benefits of considering ESG factors in investments, given the diverse range of our portfolio companies, and our ability to influence the value creation process at every step,” said Arif Naqvi, founder and group chief executive officer of Abraaj Capital.

“This integrated sustainability report provides a measurable, transparent and balanced review of the impact of Abraaj Capital’s business on the markets in which it operates. The report will drive new disclosure standards for the private equity sector and set a precedent for other organisations to follow”, said Professor Sherif Kamel, Dean of the School of Business at the American University in Cairo.

Frederic Sicre, partner at Abraaj Capital and head of the Abraaj Strategic Stakeholder Engagement Track (ASSET) added: “As this report makes clear, Abraaj Capital is committed to making a sustained and positive contribution to the communities in which we operate. In the spirit of transparency and disclosure, we will report on our ESG performance on an annual basis and look forward to sharing knowledge and best practice with our industry peers”.

The John D Gerhart Centre of Philanthropy and Civic Engagement at the American University in Cairo worked with Abraaj Capital in preparing the report.  The report was prepared as per GRI G3 guidelines. GRI is the world’s most widely used sustainability reporting framework, developed through a consensus-seeking, multi-stakeholder process. - TradeArabia News Service