Pledge Session – Ma’aden & Prince Sultan University

The Pearl Initiative launched the Business Pledge to call upon senior business leaders in the Gulf Region to make a public commitment to adhere to principles of ethical and responsible conduct when carrying out business and interacting with society. The Business Pledge allows business leaders to showcase their best practices while uniting students and business leaders to discuss the four pillars of Pearl Initiative’s Business Pledge programme.

Acknowledgements 

The Pearl Initiative team would like to thank the following organisations and individuals for their valuable input, time and engagement with our programme:

• Ma’aden
• Abdurahman Alsum, Sustainability Programs Development-Sustainability Corporate Sustainability Assurance Manager, Ma’aden
• Prince Sultan University and Dr. Allwiya Allui
• Prince Sultan University Students

The Pearl Initiative team would also like to extend a special thanks to PepsiCo as supporters of the programme, and supporters of this initiative.

Event Summary  

Event Location: Prince Sultan University, Riyadh, KSA

The Pearl Initiative held a collaborative event between Ma’aden and Prince Sultan University, Riyadh on November 15th, 2018.

The event was a Business Pledge session held as part of the Pearl Initiative’s student engagement initiative, designed to provide students with the opportunity to engage with business leaders to learn more about the practical aspects pertaining to the implementation of sustainable best practices in business.

The session was delivered by Mr. Abdurahman Alsum, Sustainability Programs Development-Sustainability Corporate Sustainability Assurance Manager at Ma’aden. Mr. Alsum discussed with the students the sustainability framework in the oil and gas industry and the fundamentals of what is sustainability and why it is an important part of any business. 

Mr. Alsum emphasised the three elements that are often taken into consideration by companies when looking to measure more than financial performance alone, that is the governance, environment and social (ESG) impact of the business. Organisations in the oil and gas industry have an important role to play in considering ways that business can reduce the damage to the environment. This is not to detract from the role of business but to also impact the economy and to be profitable. A business can and should positively impact the economy, the environment and society.  He also noted that the importance of sustainability has been reinforced for organisations in KSA by the importance placed upon it by Saudi Vision 2030.  

For Ma’aden, working in a way that is sustainable, is a fundamental part of the way in which they operate their business. The session was then opened for Q&A where the role of Saudi companies to consider not only their profits but how they are contributing to the society was discussed.