Old Mutual Investment Group (OMIG) has been named Best ESG Responsible Investor Africa 2022, for the second year in a row, by Capital Finance International (CFI), a UK-based journal reporting on business, economics, and finance.
In its judging report, CFI highlighted OMIG’s commitment to investing in a future that matters long before the Covid pandemic, which really drove home the interconnectedness of economic, environmental and social systems. “Old Mutual Investment Group’s growing reputation as an ESG champion has attracted new talent: young professionals with a passion for positive change and the drive to make a difference. The CFI.co judging panel congratulates Old Mutual Investment Group — a repeat programme winner — on claiming the 2022 award for Best ESG Responsible Investor (Africa),” reads the report.
Old Mutual Investment Group Managing Director, Tebogo Naledi, says that this award is a valuable reflection of OMIG’s commitment to responsible investment and the practices aligned to it, as well as the efforts and progress the business has made along this journey. “As a business, we have had an unwavering focus on delivering sustainable long-term risk-adjusted returns for clients, while also creating a positive impact on communities and ecosystems. We’ve done this through significant investment in the integration of material ESG issues across the investment process, using quantitative and qualitative analysis from internal and external sources to conduct a proprietary assessment. So, we are truly grateful to receive the kind of recognition offered by this award.”
Head of Responsible Investment at OMIG, Robert Lewenson, adds that climate risk is an urgent systemic risk that requires thoughtful action by all participants across capital markets. “This growing urgency prompted us to join a large group of global asset managers in signing up to the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative in February 2022 – affirming our commitment to support the goal of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 or sooner – as well as joining the Climate Action 100+, a global initiative enabling investors to collectively engage directly with the largest carbon-emitting companies. These two important initiatives have enabled us to have a global voice in supporting a socially just transition within our local market and we continue to drive our responsible investment strategy, taking into account the latest global trends as well as collaborating with international partners to achieve impactful outcomes,” he says.
In terms of the way forward for his business, Naledi is adamant about OMIG’s steadfast commitment to investing sustainably for future generations. “Guiding our clients in successful ESG investing remains top of our agenda as a responsible investor and we look forward to the exciting developments that this area of investing continues to bring,” concludes Naledi.