Can you talk about you or your company’s efforts relating to renewability, sustainability or other environmentally-friendly activities?

In the last year, there was a strong focus on embedding sustainability across the Axiata Group. One of the most significant achievements was the formalisation of the board sustainability committee (BSC), as part of our response to growing stakeholder interest in how we run our business. The BSC will also further entrench commitment to deliver stronger sustainability performance.

In September 2021, Axiata became the first telco in Malaysia to sign its commitment to the Science-Based Target Initiative (SBTi). In support of this, we launched the Axiata net-zero carbon roadmap in May 2022. The aim is to achieve net-zero emissions no later than 2050, with a near-term 2030 target to reduce operational carbon emissions by 45%. This move is reinforced through the adoption of the task force on climate-related financial disclosures (TCFD), reporting framework to prepare the business to mitigate negative climate impact. A three-year plan was developed to support its rollout.

Internally we “refreshed” our sustainability framework to strengthen the integration of ESG considerations into all business segments. The framework outlined clear targets and goals that translate into scorecards and senior leadership team key performance indicators.

We believe that corporates can play a vital role to drive the climate agenda. In the last 12 months, I represented Axiata as a speaker and panellist at various national and international platforms to provide perspectives and inputs on policies and support that are required to meet the overall climate agenda.

In meeting our sustainability goals, collaboration is crucial. Axiata became a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) this year, to elevate our commitment to building solid partnerships globally and locally. We worked with our peers and telco industry network (GSMA) to build awareness of the role that the telecommunication sector can play to reduce carbon emissions. Axiata hosted and participated in roundtable sessions to discuss matters related to sustainability and climate policies with regulators, peers, and industry bodies. In December 2022, Axiata led a closed-door roundtable in collaboration with GSMA and UNGC to discuss the renewable energy pathway for the teleco industry in Malaysia. The session brought together telco companies, regulators, and electricity supply providers to discuss collaborative measures to enable more access to renewables for corporates in Malaysia.

It can be difficult to truly measure a company’s track record and accomplishments in terms of their environmentally friendly behaviour. What do you think has, until now, been mostly missed when discussing how green a company is?

I believe the most missed in establishing how a green company is, relates to the following:

(1) Correlate investments with long-term benefits and quantify these benefits.

(2) Influence suppliers/vendors meaningfully to adopt the same ESG standards along the supply chain to mutually benefit

(3) Measure the impact of sustainable initiatives and account for indirect benefits. Given that there is no standard method to account for nontangible benefits, any attempt to quantify this is largely open to scrutiny and uncertainty, which has led to minimal disclosure in this space.

More work is required to spur corporates to collaboratively work towards achieving clarity to create marked change for the environment in which we operate and rely. Establishing standards/accepted methodologies to measure impact beyond dollars and cents remains an area for improvement to measure how green a company is.