Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management (ETDs)

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    Environmental, social and corporate governance investment on organizational sustainability: A case of the South African mining sector
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Dlamini, Mlandvo Brian Thembinkosi; Mondi, Lumkile
    Mining companies continue to mine and process minerals as the demand for such minerals remains high and will do so into the future for livelihoods to be sustained. However, there are many risks associated with mining and mineral processing activities concerning environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. For organizations listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), there has been a mandatory call for ESG disclosure by these organizations to disclose what they are doing to eliminate or mitigate against risks associated with ESG. Addressing these risks requires a significant financial investment. The purpose of this research is to provide insight into the costs and benefits of investing in ESG within the context of the South African mining industry, with South Africa being a developing country. ESG matters have not been fully studied in developing countries. The appreciation of what focusing on them requires in as far as investing financially relative to the costs remains a crucial consideration. Managers and leaders have been left asking themselves what it would cost to invest in ESG, along with the reward it is expected to bring. The aim of this work is to review what seven of the JSE listed mining companies have invested towards addressing ESG risks and what benefit it has brought them. Secondary data available from the sustainability reports and annual reports of BHP Group Limited, Glencore plc, Anglo American plc, Gold Fields Limited, Anglo American Platinum, South32 Limited and Anglogold Ashanti, was sourced for this study. The chosen companies were chosen based on their value, being over R100 billion by market capitalization. These are companies for who’s data would be available as they are obligated to disclose their actions concerning ESG. From the results, the stakeholder community is in favour of companies having measures inplace to address issues concerning ESG risks. Disclosure of the actions taken increases awareness for the company and because of this, the reward is brand awareness leading to organizational sustainability. The amount of money invested in ESG is negligible compared to the long-term reward for the company. The study concludes that investing in ESG contributes to organizational sustainability. This research has provided the answers to the questions asked about the benefits of investing in ESG. Those who have done it are greatly rewarded. It isrecommended that mining companies set aside a budget to eliminate or mitigate against issues associated with ESG metrics to enjoy long-term sustainability
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    Impact of the Environmental, Social, and Governance reporting framework on practices in JSE listed companies
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) Manyike, Nyanisi Nyeleti
    A company's long-term sustainability and financial performance are the most important goals all CEOs and managers aim to achieve. One way of achieving these objectives is by integrating ESG into a company’s investment decision-making processes. ESG reporting ensures that an organization is accountable for Environmental, Social, and Governance issues. The proposition that the author makes is that integrating ESG in investment decision-making processes will result in a company’s long-term sustainability together with improved financial performance. The study sampled 42 out of 100 respondents from an Asset Manager. The results show that, although some respondents do not fully agree that ESG integration in investment decision-making processes improves its financial performance, the majority hold the view that it achieves this goal and most particularly long-term sustainability of a company. As such, the findings from the 42 respondents confirm the two propositions made by the author. Although there is high agreement that ESG integration accomplishes the two said objectives, there are respondents who do not agree with the same. This study did not probe reasons for varying views, as such it is recommended that a mixed methods study be conducted in the future to understand in-depth reasons behind the responses
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    An initial study of disclosures related to responsible investing implementation
    (2021) Jacobson, Lori Tasmin
    Financial institutions (FIs) such as banks, insurance companies and pension funds have a significant impact on the environment through the financing they provide. Companies such as mining and oil and gas companies receive funding and use this for different projects, some of which have severe environmental and social consequences. This study examined the extent to which both the grantor of finance and the receiver of finance identify and apply responsible investment (RI) practices when making investment decisions. RI disclosure in the integrated reports of companies was examined to assist with the research. The study also examines if there is a relationship between companies listed on the FTSE/JSE RI index and the FTSE/JSE RI Top 30 index and the extent of their RI disclosure. The results of this research indicate that the extent of RI disclosure in FIs in South Africa is limited. The research further found that the extent of RI disclosure for the mining and oil and gas companies was stronger than for FI’s. Finally, the research found that there appears to be a correlation between companies listed on the indices and their RI disclosure. This was noted as companies on the indices have stronger RI disclosures than companies not on the index
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    ESG reporting and the institutional shareholder base: a quantitative study of listed companies on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange
    (2019) Moikwatlhai, Kagisho Benjamin
    Previous research findings suggest that companies within developed markets which report on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues attract a long term oriented institutional investor base. Against this background, the purpose of this study was to assess whether this relationship holds true within an emerging market context. Using cross-sectional time series data for 114 Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) listed companies over the period 2012 to 2016, this study investigated whether the integration of ESG factors in investor decision making has resulted in investments being held into the long term by institutional investors and whether this relationship varies between different sectors of the JSE. The results were based on a regression analysis which was performed employing data from the Thomson Reuters ASSET4 platform as a proxy for ESG reporting scores against institutional investor shareholdings. The results did not indicate a statistically meaningful relationship between ESG reporting and the long term oriented institutional investor base even at the industry level. The results did not appear to be consistent with similar studies in developed markets, partly as a consequence of the JSE comprising greater quasi institutional investors as compared to dedicated investors. The results suggest that institutional investor’s commitment to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) and Code for Responsible Investing in South Africa (CRISA) is yet to translate into investments in JSE companies being held long term. These findings motivate for further academic analysis of ESG-long term investor relationship, to policy setters the results call for greater consideration to be given to policy changes or industry guidance in order to ensure that the objectives as set out by the UN PRI and CRISA are achieved.