Dubai Customs won the first place in the Arabia CSR Awards of the public sector category for the second consecutive time.
The organizing body of the competition, Arabia Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Network held an awarding ceremony for the winners in its fourth cycle which took place at Grand Hyatt Dubai Hotel under the patronage of HH Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Civil Aviation Authority, Chairman of Dubai Airports and in the presence of many officials from government authorities and private organizations in the region in addition to a high official delegation from the UN.
Dubai Customs received the first place and won the grand award in recognition of its sustainable social initiatives as well as meeting the requirements of the Awards. More than 110 Arab and foreign organizations and firms competed for the award.
On behalf of Dubai Customs, Mr. Yosef Al Sahlawi, Senior Executive Director of Corporate Affairs along with Mrs. Feryal Tawakul, Executive Director of Community Affairs and Government Partnership were handed the Award.
Mr. Al Sahlawi said:" We are very proud of receiving this Award from an independent international jury. This definitely indicates that we have been fully implementing the international standards of social responsibility and this award will support our efforts and steps we have taken in this road such as earning the international standard SA 8000 last year and focusing on our employees and clients’ rights besides our care for the different society segments and the environmental issues as well as increasing the society’s awareness about intellectual property issues and the dangers of consuming counterfeited products.”
“CSR causes are top priority of the Department’s business strategies. We have managed to successfully transform social responsibility into an added value to the organization instead of being a burden which fosters Customs well-reputed status through the economic and social outcomes of these initiatives” he further noted.
Mrs. Tawakul said : “ Winning the award for the second year on a row came as a result of the intense care the upper management gives to social responsibility and due to launching the numerous initiatives which contributed much to this success. Social responsibility has become an integral part of Dubai Customs strategy and is considered highly crucial. The department, in its social initiatives, has focused on CSR’s four main pillars which are the environment, society, clients, and people. Also, the department has adopted a number of sustainable social projects. ”
“The Department believes that its much focus and care for CSR is part of the UN’s international declaration of human rights and the core conventions of the World Labor Organization as well as its commitment to preserving the environment and the natural resources.
" Dubai Customs encourages its employees, clients and partners to implement the best practices which curb pollution and footprint and support recycling and energy saving methods whenever possible.”
“ To ensure achieving this objective, we make the utmost use of the quality management system inline with the ISO standard 14001:2004 and the social responsibility standard SA 8000:2008.”
Furthermore, Mrs. Tawakul clarified that Dubai Customs’ social initiatives in the recent years focused on the employees and clients’ rights and transparency of treating them through the Client Charter in addition to paying regular visits to patients and people with special needs, not to mention initiatives such as cleaning the beaches, combating the illicit trading of endangered animals, providing support to women by founding Al Raeda Women’s Committee and launching the Best Working Mother Award and inaugurating Dubai Customs Child Care Center.
Moreover, the Department’s initiatives include fostering charitable and volunteerism culture, increasing society’s awareness about the dangers of consuming counterfeited goods and Customs role in maintaining intellectual property rights. She further noted that the employees’ joint efforts helped achieve the social and economic outcomes of the initiatives.
Dubai Customs has adopted the “Green Customs Initiative”, which was launched by the UN environment program with the participation of the WCO and a number of other international organizations. The initiative aims at combating illicit trading of environmentally harmful substances and facilitation of legal trade. The department opened last April its own stand at Kidzania, the child entertainment city at Dubai Mall, to introduce the younger generation to the important role that the department plays in society and economic life especially Customs inspection. The stand helps enlighten the kids about Dubai Customs’ role in protecting society from the counterfeited products.
A number of requirements were fulfilled in the Award’s fourth cycle this year including a brief on the Department, its organizational structure and responsibilities affecting sustainability, compliance to implementing its strategies, highlighting its vision, mission and values and how they influence sustainability, besides the Department’s environmental and social roles, its awareness programs and activities, internal and external reporting, measuring outcomes and reporting on partners’ participation in the Department’s development.
The judging panel of the Award which comprises world-class specialized experts in the field of corporate social responsibility commended Dubai Customs efforts in this domain and for excelling at sustainability as the Department managed to combine economic business and trade with sustainable community growth.
Arabia CSR Awards’ judges consisted of Mr. Matthias Stausberg, Spokesperson of the United Nations Global Compact in New York, Dr. Gracia Ugut, Associate Dean, Asian Institute of Management in Philippines and Mr. Ralph Thurm, Director of Sustainable Strategies at Deloitte Holland and Dr. Ashraf Gamal, Executive Director of the Egyptian Institute of Directors.