Press Releases

Budapest, June 20, 2017 11:00

• Magyar Telekom closed the first year of its sustainability strategy successfully
• For the second time already, the group operated in a carbon neutral way again in 2016, as its annual total emission reached 0 gram annual CO2 emission equivalent at international group level
• „Our worlds are different. Still, we understand each other” - Telekom established strategic partnership with Autistic Art in 2016 and became the supporter of the Hungarian Paralympic Committee
• 11,412 hours of voluntary work, contribution to the society in the theoretical value of  HUF 56.3 million
• Training courses targeting industry sector wide succession and safe internet usage involved 14 thousand students
• Record number of visitors - 5,000 people at the 9th Sustainability Day eventRecord level - 5,000 visitors at the 9th Sustainability Day even
• By reaching more than 10 thousand downloads, hello holnap! is the most popular Telekom app, serving the purpose of awareness raising as well as supporting NGOs

As an outstanding value within the Hungarian business environment in 2016 Magyar Telekom already introduced its fourth five years (2016-2020) sustainability strategy providing a detailed report about the results of the first year of this strategy in its 2016 Sustainability Report. Along the development of its sustainability strategy the company has taken into account its contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).The strategic guidelines of the 2016-2020 period focus three key areas. The company continues to hold climate protection as its top priority, together with education, awareness raising and digitally enabled sustainability.

One of the major achievements of 2016 was that following 2015 Magyar Telekom managed to execute its operations staying 100% carbon neutral. „As we stayed on the path of keeping our operations entirely carbon neutral, we continue to decrease our emissions, we strive for the improvement of our energy efficiency, by introducing even more smart solutions to our work processes” – said Christopher Mattheisen, Chief Executive Officer of the company. As part of the environmentally conscious operation, the company continued to increase the ratio of hybrid and electric cars within its corporate fleet, while 100 percent of the company’s electric energy use in Hungary was provided from renewable energy sources. In 2016 the associates of the company performed 87,276 hours of remote working, saving 3 million kilometers of travelling and more than 190 tons of CO2 emission. The company neutralized the remaining, fossil energy usage derived emission in a green project, specifically by supporting a water energy power plant.

Consequent to its sustainability performance, Magyar Telekom is continuously acknowledged by responsible investors who consider both social and environmental aspects of company operations along their investment decisions. The responsible investor assessment of Oekom Research has rated Magyar Telekom in 2016 as Premium B again, among the companies recommended for responsible investment. Additionally, the company was also listed among the first corporations in the FTSE4Good Emerging Index launched by FTSE Russell, the independent global index provider in 2016. The Index was developed to assess the performance of companies with efficient environmental, social and governance (ESG) activities.

As one of the important steps taken last year, Magyar Telekom entered into a strategic NGO partnership with Autistic Art. By supporting the social visibility of autism, the company intends to promote social acceptance of those living with this condition, while as a telecommunication company Magyar Telekom also intends to offer assistance when it comes to coping with the difficult task of communication for people living with autism. Telekom also became the supporter of the Hungarian Paralympic Committee in 2016. The company assists the Hungarian team’s preparation in the next Paralympic cycle. In addition, by cooperating with several interest representation organizations of people living with impairments Telekom announced further favorable terms hello holnap! tariff packages The service that is on market since 2014 is unique on the telecommunications service palette is now also enabling helpers and family members of those living with autism to use the new tariff package offering favorable terms.

Volunteering is an organic part of corporate culture within the Magyar Telekom Group. Among others, in the course of charity team building programs and on the Telekom Voluntary Day organized in the autumn, the company’s associates spent a total of 11,412 working hours on voluntary activities, which equals to a contribution to the society with the theoretic value of HUF 56.3 million. On December 5, the International Volunteer Day almost 1 thousand associates of the company from all around Hungary, as well as the members of the Sustainability Media Club took part in the cookie charity program titled Giving Feels Good! In the framework of the cookie fair a donation of HUF 1.7 million was collected for the Autistic Art Foundation, which was supplemented by the company by adding further 4 million HUF.

Education is one of the key priorities of the sustainability strategy. Accordingly, the company also manages several programs to promote career opportunities within the IT sector, and programs aiming to raise awareness about safe internet use. In the frame of the Digital Bridge, You Should Also Be an IT Expert! and the Smart Digital programs – organized by the volunteering associates of Magyar Telekom and T-Systems Hungary – the company has contributed to the digital maturity of 14 thousand students. Additionally, in cooperation with its mother company Deutsche Telekom and the Eötvös Lóránd University of Sciences, Magyar Telekom established the Data Science and Data Technology Faculty in 2016.

Last year in September the Magyar Telekom Sustainability Day has reached a record of five thousand visitors. On the occasion of the 9th Sustainability Day – organized at a new venue – experts in four panels discussed chances inherent in the digital era, while visitors could also get insights into the sustainability related activities of more than 50 exhibiting organizations. The company also organizes its professional day targeting the general public, as the 10th – jubilee - Sustainability Day will be organized in Akvárium Klub.

The 2016 Sustainability Report is available on the renewed helloholnap.hu website of the company. The site was refreshed both in format and content, describing the company’s sustainability related activities, along the three focal areas of its sustainability strategy.

This year the company’s sustainability report was already prepared in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards: Comprehensive option – that is going to be obligatory following G4 from 2018. The external audit of the report was performed by PricewaterhouseCoopers Audit Ltd. based on the ISAE 3000 international standards. 

Sustainability reports

The Magyar Telekom Group is convinced that infocommunication can be a tool to achieve sustainability, therefore the group – being one of the largest employers in Hungary – takes responsibility and commits to pursue its operation, governance and activities sustainably. Since over a decade, along this commitment Telekom has  conducted its operations paying utmost attention to sustainable development, the protection of natural resources, environment and climate as well as the promotion of social justice and equal opportunities.