• A first of its kind innovative solution in the region

Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Majid Al Futtaim Retail, operator of the Carrefour franchise in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, and Standard Chartered Bank announced today the launch of the region’s first Sustainable Supply Chain Finance programme.

The innovative solution, designed by Standard Chartered Bank, enables Majid Al Futtaim Retail to incentivise their supplier partners to improve their sustainability performance and indicators, and address key Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) risks within the supply chain.

Together, Majid Al Futtaim Retail and Standard Chartered Bank will work with a diverse range of Carrefour’s most active suppliers in the UAE to introduce a pilot programme ahead of the official programme launch, covering a wide range of categories offered at Carrefour.  

Reiterating Majid Al Futtaim’s commitment to sustainability, this new programme will incentivize suppliers that meet sustainability criteria such as using energy-efficient equipment, employing fuel efficient vehicles, and minimizing landfill waste, with favourable financing terms. This programme, which is the first of its kind in the region, will further the company’s commitment to supporting local economies, producers and suppliers across the markets that it serves from whom it sources more than 80% of its products.

Commenting on this pioneering sustainable programme, Hani Weiss, Chief Executive Officer of Majid Al Futtaim Retail, said: “Today’s announcement is a great moment for Majid Al Futtaim, as it combines two core aspects of our extended responsibilities to the communities we operate in together; supporting our suppliers, and driving our sustainability agenda. We regard our suppliers as partners, working together to achieve the triple win, for them, us and of course, our customers. Through this innovative programme, we are not only supporting our supplier partners, moreover, we are also introducing and incentivising them to adopt sustainable practices within their operations”. 

Rola Abu Manneh, Chief Executive Officer, Standard Chartered UAE, added: “We are pleased to launch this bespoke programme with one of our leading clients in the UAE. This sustainable solution goes hand in hand with our sustainability agenda and sets a key milestone for the role of the private sector in the UAE’s Net Zero 2050 strategic initiative.”

The Sustainable Supply Chain Financing programme builds on previous successful partnerships between Majid Al Futtaim and Standard Chartered, including its Supplier Finance Programme, which was launched in the UAE in 2019 in an effort to support local suppliers with financing, Majid Al Futtaim’s first sustainability linked loan, in addition to a number of green bond and sukuk

Majid Al Futtaim has a long history of working towards the effective and efficient management of resources as it endeavours to operate a sustainable, yet scalable business. In 2018, as a part of the company-wide sustainability strategy, Dare Today, Change Tomorrow, Majid Al Futtaim established three focus areas: Transforming Lives, Rethinking Resources, and Empowering Our People. In 2020, Majid Al Futtaim launched its company-wide Circular Economy Strategy to reduce environmental impact further, aiming by 2030 to have all Majid Al Futtaim businesses operating with circularity at the core, and achieving Net Positive in emissions and water consumption by 2040.

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Carrefour by Majid Al Futtaim

Carrefour was introduced to the region in 1995 by UAE company Majid Al Futtaim. The Company is the franchisee for Carrefour in over 30 markets across the Middle East, Africa and Asia. To meet the growing needs of its diverse customer base and communities, Carrefour offers omnichannel customer experiences tailored to the needs of the modern consumer. Through its innovative physical and digital customer services, Carrefour provides access to an unrivalled choice of quality products, at unbeatable value for the 750,000 customers it serves daily. Committed to supporting local economies, producers and suppliers in the communities it serves, Carrefour sources over 80 per cent of its products from the region.

About Majid Al Futtaim

Founded in 1992, Majid Al Futtaim is the leading shopping mall, communities, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

A remarkable business success story, Majid Al Futtaim started from one man’s vision to transform the face of shopping, entertainment and leisure to ‘create great moments for everyone, every day’. It has since grown into one of the United Arab Emirates’ most respected and successful businesses spanning 16 international markets, employing more than 43,000 people, and obtaining the highest credit rating (BBB) among privately held corporates in the region.

Majid Al Futtaim owns and operates 29 shopping malls, 13 hotels and four mixed-use communities, with further developments underway in the region. The shopping malls portfolio includes Mall of the Emirates, Mall of Egypt, Mall of Oman, City Centre malls, My City Centre neighbourhood centres, and five community malls which are in joint venture with the Government of Sharjah. The Company is the exclusive franchisee for Carrefour in over 30 markets across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, operating a portfolio of more than 400 outlets including City+, the region’s first checkout-free store, and an online store.

Majid Al Futtaim operates more than 600 VOX Cinemas screens as well as a portfolio of world-class leisure and entertainment experiences across the region including Ski Dubai, Ski Egypt, Dreamscape, Magic Planet, Little Explorers and iFLY Dubai. The Company is parent to a Fashion, Home and Specialty retail business representing international brands such as Abercrombie & Fitch, Hollister, AllSaints, lululemon athletica, Crate & Barrel, LEGO and THAT, a Majid Al Futtaim fashion concept store and app. In addition, Majid Al Futtaim operates Enova, a facility and energy management company, through a joint venture operation with Veolia, a global leader in optimised environment resource management.

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