Perseus Mining Limited has released its year 2020 CY20 Sustainable Development Report.
The report details the company’s progress over the past 12 months in delivering on its commitment to responsible mining operations in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, including an overall economic benefit to host countries totalling about USD$385M.
It further said as part of its longstanding commitment to the communities in which it operates, it recorded increasing community investment by 71% to around US$1.9M in CY20, funding critical health and education infrastructure projects for local communities.
Additionally, Perseus announced it had increased its proportion of local procurement from 66% in CY19 to 78% in CY20, totalling US$287M, and further expanded its employment of local populations, with 96% of its current workforce local to Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.
Jeff Quartermaine, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, CEO, of Perseus maintained that sustainability is deeply rooted in Perseus’s culture and operations and has had a large part to play in their resilience during the challenging year.
“We believe that responsible gold mining can play a key role in sustainable development, and that investing in our employees and our communities to create enduring social value will remain a guiding force in our growth path and future business operations. I am proud of my team’s effective response to the pandemic which successfully safeguarded our operations as well as our people, enabling us to deliver our Yaouré mine in Côte d’Ivoire this year ahead of schedule. Our approach to sustainability has continued to mature as our business has grown, and in the coming years we look forward to expanding our ESG offering and delivering greater impact across Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana,” he said.
On her part, Jessica Volich, Group Sustainability Manager at Perseus observed that despite the challenges the past year had brought, Perseus’s sustainability agenda has continued to strengthen and evolve alongside its expanding operations.
According to her, the company’s wide-ranging efforts and engagement with the local communities and host governments has enabled it to create shared sustainable value for all stakeholders.
“We are committed to strengthening these relationships in the coming years as we endeavour to generate socio-economic value for our people, communities and host countries,” Volich opined.
The report further stated that in CY20, Perseus has enhanced its disclosure on sustainability-related risks and opportunities by aligning with the key reporting frameworks used by our stakeholders.
These include the World Gold Council Responsible Gold Mining Principles, Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) and the Task Force on Climate Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).
