The summit and awards ceremony are organised by Ion Africa Business, Ianmatsun Global Services and CSR Training Institute.

The events are under the theme: “Responsible Business: The Sustainable Path to Profitability”.

Summit

President of the CSR Training Institute, Professor Wayne Dunn, stated that responsible business is the only smart way to transact business, emphasising that businesses that did not practice socially and environmentally responsible business would face rising challenges and increasing risks.

The Managing Director of Ianmatsun Global Services, Isaac Adu-Gyamfi, indicated that the purpose of the summit was to bring together a mix of business to business and business to consumer companies and individuals, along with civil society and regulators together to understand and address the tough challenges and map a sustainable future for the industry in a responsible manner.

Criteria

Mr Adu-Gyamfi said the criteria for shortlisting nominees would be based on some key performance indicators and a survey by the Market and Consumer Insight, a research company that would handle the technical aspects of the awards.

He further disclosed that an awarding board made up of professionals with the necessary training and expertise would verify and approve the selected applicants.

Categories

The awards have been placed in three main categories, namely the Initiative Awards, the Industry Awards and the Individual Awards.

Awards from the three categories include the Responsible Mining and Exploration Company of the Year, Road Safety Project of the Year, Responsible Healthcare Initiative of the Year, Women Empowerment Initiative of the Year, Environmental Responsibility Initiatives of the Year, Responsible and Purpose Driven Communication Award, Responsible Digital Innovation Award, Responsible Think Tank of the Year, Responsible Social Enterprise of the Year, Promising Responsible Business of the Year, Responsible Social leader of the Year, Responsibility and Positive Attitude (reserved for students), and Lifetime Achievement Award for Ethical Leadership and Corporate Governance.

Others are the Responsible Business with best CSR and Sustainability Practices Award, Company with Best Integrated Report, Responsible Business Leadership Award, Circular Economy Leadership Award, Social Impact Champion, SDG Pioneer of the Year, Responsible Employer of the Year, Diversity Champion of the Year, ESG Champion of the Year, Purpose Before Profit Award, Responsible Product and Service innovation Award, Responsible SME of the Year and Circular Economy and Waste to Fuel Award.