Gov’t to ensure organisations adhere to environmentally friendly practices

A national corporate social responsibility policy will be launched in the last quarter of this year to ensure that businesses behave responsibly towards the environment no matter the challenges they face.

The policy also aims to ensure businesses remain socially responsible and embrace sustainable practises.

The Minister of Trade and Industry, Ekow Spio Garbrah, stated this in a speech read on his behalf by the Chief Executive of the Private Sector Development Strategy at the Ministry, Joe Tackie, at the sixth edition of Ghana Corporate Social Responsibility Excellence Awards, in Accra.

The Ghana Corporate Social Responsibility Excellence Awards, GHACEA, launched six years ago has injected a new wave into how businesses give back to society.

Companies are now becoming more informed about their roles in society and are leaving no stone unturned to weave social responsibility and sustainability around their core business mandate.

The Minister of Trade and Industry, Ekow Spio Garbrah, in a speech read on his behalf by the Chief Executive of the Private Sector Development Strategy at the Ministry, Joe Tackie, noted that the responsibility of businesses is not only to their shareholders but to government, the people and the environment hence the development of the policy which has had input from stakeholders across the country.

The Lead Project Manager of Centre for CSR West Africa, Kojo Williams said the award is becoming more competitive every year as about 130 companies applied this year.

Twenty one category of awards were given to deserving companies and individuals with MTN Ghana receiving the CSR Company of the year Award.

The CSR Practitioner Award went to Gifty Bingley of Tigo with Unilever Ghana taking the CSR Greening and Environmental Protection Award.

There were no awards for CSR Agribusiness, Aviation Company and Real Estate Company of the year because the entries for these categories did not meet the requirements.