• Highest ever benchmarking score of 88.68% sees du receive the award for the third time
• du is the only telecom operator in the UAE in the region to be awarded this label
• Telco uses commitment to support growth amongst other companies in the UAE

UAE, Dubai, 3 March 2016: du is proud to announce that it has been awarded the CSR Label from Dubai Chamber for the third time. The award – a sustainability benchmarking tool – is led by the Dubai Chamber Centre for Responsible Business and is awarded to a range of organisations in Dubai and the UAE that show continuous commitment towards corporate sustainability.

The CSR label follows a slew of awards for the telecom operator’s commitment to sustainability in business in the last year, including the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Business Award, a member of Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives launched by Dubai Chamber and the “Best in Class’ Award at the Middle East Call Centre Summit, which was awarded to the company on account of its Fujairah Call Centre, a workplace of 100% Emirati and 95% women. Since it was last awarded the CSR Label in 2013, du has increased its certification by 13% and exceeds the label average by over 20% compared to the majority of businesses in the UAE.

For an established business, this consistent improvement in commitment to sustainability was highly commended by H.E. Hisham Al Shirawi, 2nd Vice Chairman, Dubai Chamber, saying: “Since its launch, the response to the Dubai Chamber CSR Label from the business community has been very encouraging. In the case of du, which has received it for the third time, shows the telecom provider’s impressive commitment towards not only improving all of its processes to support efforts to become a more socially and environmentally responsible organisation, but also for its efforts to promote sustainability amongst other businesses in the region.”

Over a multiple year period since its previous award, du has increased its focus on encouraging entrepreneurship in the region, as well as growing sustainability as a key pillar in businesses across the UAE. In 2015, du welcomed eight additional graduates onto its Masar graduate scheme for young Emirati graduates, taking the total up to 35, whereby young professionals receive the rare opportunity to work in a variety of functions within the company before taking up permanent roles.  This focus on nationalisation is complemented with du’s efforts in broader youth  empowerment, with a further nine students from different nationalities were welcomed onto the Agent 055 Network, an initiative which provides students with training on the tools they need to succeed in business.

In addition, the telecom operator proved its staunch commitment towards building a sustainable UAE with its ongoing support towards other businesses, including leading training sessions to NGOs in the region, on topics such as Crisis Communications. 

“We are honoured to have our efforts towards sustainability recognised once again by Dubai Chamber. As a responsible company with an ongoing commitment towards key sustainability pillars, we now aim to encourage a sustainable outlook across businesses within the UAE,” said Hala Badri, Executive Vice President, Brand and Communications, du, on receiving the award.  “Too often, sustainability and CSR is seen as an afterthought in business, with a single corporate focus such as a charity donation at the end of the year. However, at du we have built sustainability into our overall strategy; we believe that an effective sustainability programme uses the success of a company to benefit employees, customers, communities and the economy. This has been our core focus at du and we will continue to ensure that we have a platform from which to encourage businesses across the region into focusing on a positive, sustainable future for the UAE.”

The Dubai Chamber CSR Label has been designed to provide a diagnostic framework, learning and development tool that helps organisations to define and improve CSR strategy, policies and practice in the UAE. It provides a clear voluntary standard for CSR implementation in Dubai and elsewhere in the UAE; reviews, evaluates and gives feedback on companies’ CSR strategy and actions, and provides the ability for companies to communicate better with stakeholders about their CSR commitment and practice.