Key Sustainable Development Areas and Indicators
In 2023, MTS continued integrating the sustainable development principles into its activities. Considering the key national trends, MTS maintained and strengthened its focus on social support for employees and customers, which was reflected in the additional structuring of two of the Company’s ESG Strategy areas. “Digital Community Development” brings all the Company’s external socially significant initiatives together and “liability to employees” stresses the particular importance of a careful approach to personnel support and development.
Considering the current business priorities of the Company, some of the ESG Strategy areas were formulated more comprehensively by incorporating some correlating areas, yet keeping the records of all the Company initiatives significant for sustainable development.
To integrate the ESG approach into the Company’s business operations more fully, end-to-end mechanics for strategy implementation that are equally important and mandatory for the E, S, and G areas, were separately highlighted:
- compliance and business ethics as a fundamental principle of the Company activities ensure process transparency and a high level of corporate liability;
- education and enlightenment increase the level of inclusion and understanding by the Company stakeholders of the importance of compliance with the sustainable development principles;
- the need to consider the ESG aspects, regardless of the area of implementing the product and service projects, increases the Company’s ability to influence the settlement of environmental and socially significant society issues.
The ESG Strategy of MTS is based on a group-wide approach allowing MTS subsidiaries to focus on the overall strategy of the Group, while selectively detailing the ESG areas considering the specifics of their activities and the ESG maturity level. The Company takes a systematic approach to manage all types of risks inherent in the diversified business of MTS, as well as takes into account the ESG risks when making decisions at different management levels.
Guiding principles of MTS are openness, transparency, essentiality, and high-quality disclosure of significant ESG information for a wide range of stakeholders in the Annual Report and the Sustainable Development Report.
In 2023, MTS continued to develop educational and enlightenment areas, introduced inclusive culture elements, including at the digital level, and integrated charitable programs into the Company products. The Company provided continuous access to modern digital services and high-quality communication services for all categories of citizens, regardless of geographical location, national background, age and health characteristics, was involved in improving the level of information and cyber security.
Detailed information is set out in the “ESG and Sustainable Development” section, as well as in the 2023 MTS Sustainable Development Report for 2023
2023 год
Environmental Care
“Production and Consumption Waste Management” Standard was introduced
Draft Strategy to manage greenhouse gas emissions and achieve goals of carbon footprint reduction was developed
440,800 electronic devices were restored under the customer equipment refurbishment program
34,144 kg of plastic and 23,030 kg of electronic components transferred for responsible recycling
> 2 million people covered by MTS educational and enlightenment content on environmental issues
3,700 kg of small electronic equipment and more than 28 tons of scrap computer equipment and scrap communication equipment have been sent for recycling and responsible disposal
Responsible Business Management
MTS confirmed compliance of the Unified Compliance System with the requirements of ISO 37301:2021 “Compliance Management Systems” and ISO 37001:2016 “Anti-Corruption Compliance Management System”
The “Trademark Lifecycle Management” project became the winner of the Russian IP Russia Awards in nomination of “Automation of Handling IP Items”
MTS information security management was ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified
100% of the Board of Directors members, the Management Board members and members of the Committees under the Board of Directors passed trainings on the anti-corruption compliance system
> 36,000 employees were trained on organizing the data processing and data privacy
2.6 million cases of fraud detected
RUB 7,634 million is amount of losses prevented
2.9 billion calls blocked on the MTS network by antifraud systems
Responsibility to Employees
The average salary at the Company is 11.1% higher than in the country as a whole
72% (32 thous. employees) — share of self-assigned training (+23% by 2022)
About 78% of managerial and 60% of other vacancies are filled by internal candidates
A special assessment of the working conditions was carried out in relation to 91% of workplaces in the Corporate Center of the MTS Group and the branches of MTS PJSC
> 900 interns across the entire MTS ecosystem accepted for traineeship
About 40% of those who completed the traineeship were reassigned to regular staff
> 7,500 employees of the MTS ecosystem participate in corporate volunteering
620 MTS managers have completed educational programs for diversity, equality, inclusivity issues, including for observance of human rights
20,000 employees are covered by an educational campaign on various aspects of inclusive culture and human rights on the Pulse portal
The Inclusivity Index in the MTS ecosystem increased by 35 percentage points against 2022
Digital Society Development
MTS Cashback users have written off RUB 20.7 million in favor of charitable foundations
18 socially useful digital products (VR films, audio guides, educational materials, etc.) have been created
In the country regions, MTS has created 84 tourist audio guides, which were used by 900,000 people at year-end 2023
MTS converted the MTS “Generation M” platform users’ digital activities into the amount of RUB 24 million, which was sent to treat 86 children who are seriously ill
PUE Data
The Link between the ESG Agenda and the Company Strategy
MTS is a digital ecosystem, therefore both the business strategy and the ESG Strategy of the Company are based on developing innovative digital technologies that allows ensuring maximum benefit for the Company’s customers and stakeholders.
At the center of the MTS business strategy stays a human, whose needs consideration allow us to build long-term relationships with the customers by the high product quality. MTS ESG initiatives become a logical continuation of this approach by expanding the range of human and social needs that the ecosystem can satisfy exactly by its technologies.
High corporate governance, management, legal and IT security standards, which are the MTS DNA, allow the Company to find and build efficient partnerships. Willingness for cooperation and partnership is embedded in the MTS business strategy and assists in implementing socially and environmentally significant initiatives. For example, in 2023, MTS continued high-tech cooperation with wildlife sanctuaries, educational institutions, and expanded the number of partnership non-profit organizations.
In 2023, MTS continued to actively participate in the meetings of the ESG dedicated committees of the Alliance, thereby helping to increase the maturity of the national ESG agenda, further elaboration of national ranking methodologies, etc.
Within the development of the international ESG agenda, the Company participated in the development and piloting of the ESG metrics developed in the international project “ESG Metrics for Mobile” of the GSMA Association.
Top-Level Internal Documents on Sustainable Development
The Company has developed and used a set of internal regulations promoting compliance with and introduction of the principles of sustainable development in the Company’s business operations. For example, the need to observe human rights is specifically stated in the “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” policy, and there is a whole range of regulations in place to ensure information security and personal data protection. Suppliers certainly get acquainted with the Counterparty Code of Business Conduct, which reflects the Company’s approaches to environmental and social responsibility, etc.
Moreover, in 2023, MTS PJSC introduced the Production and Consumption Waste Management Standard and developed a draft Strategy for Managing Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Achieving Goals of Carbon Footprint Reduction considering the Company’s IT specifics.
ESG Governance Structure
The ESG Committee under the Board of Directors shall determine development priorities and advise on the MTS ESG agenda, and evaluate the results of work in ESG areas. In 2023, 10 meetings of the ESG Committee were held, including 2 meetings held jointly with the Remuneration and Nomination Committee under the Board of Directors of MTS PJSC. A number of subsidiaries presented materials on their ESG initiatives at the Committee meetings.
The MTS ESG Center shall be responsible for the formation and efficient implementation of the ESG strategy, shall coordinate the implementation of the key ESG areas, facilitate the introduction of ESG aspects into the Company’s business processes and agenda of sustainable development in the MTS Group.
Business areas involved in the ESG agenda shall be responsible for the implementation of activities across the key ESG areas, as well as collect ESG data for further consolidation in the ESG Center.
ESG Center in MTS structure
