On October 20, Global Compact Network Georgia held the fifth annual ceremony of the CSR Award “Business for Sustainable Development.” The purpose of the award is to promote a culture of corporate responsibility and increase the role of business in pursuing the Sustainable Development Goals agenda.
The event was held with the support of the USAID Civil Society Engagement Program and the Swedish Government. U.S. Ambassador Kelly Degnan and Ambassador of Sweden Ulrik Tideström made opening remarks at the event.
This year, 128 business companies submitted applications for the award – a record number compared to previous years. An independent jury, composed of Georgian and international experts, selected the winners for six categories: Quality Education (Winner: Bank of Georgia for supporting a multifunctional library); Decent Work and Economic Growth (Winner: Bank of Georgia for supporting women entrepreneurs); Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure (Winner: Liberty Bank for the teleclinic “MyDoc”); Responsible Consumption and Production (Winner: Polivim for recycling plastic waste); Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions (Winner: TBC Bank for Supporting the Ukraine project); and Partnership for Sustainable Development (Winner: QWERTY for supporting charity platform Superhero). The Partnership for Sustainable Development award received the most applicants, highlighting a growing trend of cooperation between civil society and the private sector.
For the third year, journalists also received awards for increasing public awareness and promoting responsible business practices and corporate responsibility in Georgia. The award for the best TV reporting was given to Mariam Vachnadze from the Georgian Public Broadcaster’s TV program Business Partner, and the award for the best online article was given to Aleksandre Gvindadze from Radio Liberty.
