by TMR / pic by TMR FILE

ARTMATRIX Technology Sdn Bhd and Duopharma Biotech Bhd have been named overall winners of the Sustainable Business Awards Malaysia (SBA) 2020/2021 in the SME and Large Enterprises categories respectively.

Held yesterday and attended by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for Economic Affairs Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed, the awards ceremony was organised by Global Initiatives Communications Pte Ltd, a Singapore-based company, which uses sustainability and data science know-how to help companies become more sustainable.

Initiated in 2012, the SBA is known to be the region’s leading sustainable awards platform which had been held in five countries namely Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand.

The assessment process was supported by PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the knowledge partner in the assessment of submissions after which the results were presented to an independent National Advisory Panel (NAP) for each country.

Yesterday was the awards’ third edition in Malaysia which was supported by PwC Malaysia, The World Business Council for Sustainable Development and BCSD Malaysia, the Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology, Novafusion, Thought for Food, The Malaysian Reserve and Green Growth Asia Foundation.

The winners were chosen for having highlighted their consistent performance across 12 categories.

Meanwhile, Heineken (M) Bhd received the Highly Commended Award for the strength of their overall sustainability programmes. With a strong sustainability governance in place, Heineken had been tackling water management issues, responsible consumption and sustainable sourcing.

Their record showed gradual improvements over the years and ambitious goals set for the future.

Global Initiatives ED and COO Shefali Chaddha said while quite a large number of SMEs registered for the awards, only a small number eventually completed the assessment.

“This shows that SMEs, while being interested in doing more for sustainability, still have some way to go and need more support and encouragement.

“As for the large corporations, we found that they are at varying stages of their sustainability journey. But overall, today’s winners are an inspiration to others,” he said in a statement.

This year, the SBA process was significantly enhanced. For instance, each participant received an Individual Insights Report with a comprehensive view of their sustainability preparedness and compared it to global reporting standards.

While the questionnaire itself was longer and more comprehensive, the process of completion was made much simpler through a new platform that included drop-down menus and fewer open-ended questions.

The assessment process was very rigorous and included validation of responses and company interviews where appropriate. The results were then presented to the NAP who finally adjudicated the awards.