The markets in which we operate have historically shown a propensity for political and regulatory uncertainties. This heightens the importance of the thorough steps we have taken and continue to take in mitigating against risks in these areas, which include extensive and long-term engagements with regulatory authorities, the appointment of subject-matter experts, and sustained collaboration between our OpCos and with other industry players.
The industry we operate in remains highly regulated by a broad range of telecom regulations, which may also be uncertain or subject to change as markets mature, thereby creating uncertainties for our operations and potentially impairing business returns and long-term growth prospects.
Through a detailed regulatory compliance framework overseen by Group Regulatory, we deliver a structured approach to monitoring regulatory compliance across the Group. Externally, we collaborate with other telco industry players, enabling us to represent one voice in advocating strict compliance and fair and transparent policies, while also empowering the sharing of best practices.
We also actively participate in regulatory and government officials’ dialogues to anticipate emerging regulations, and to address and highlight concerns, obstacles and challenges that telco players may face. Additionally, we engage with regulatory officials in implementing sustainable regulatory regimes that aid the development of the telecoms sector in our markets of operation.
Supported by these measures, we were able to improve our regulatory compliance monitoring and insights during 2021, enabling greater agility in adopting and adapting to adverse changes in the regulatory landscape.
The markets we operate in are prone to political instabilities, civil unrest and other social tensions which may cause business disruption, exposure to adverse changes in the regulatory landscape, and uncertainty in policy-making. These may undermine market sentiment and investor confidence.
We collaborate with all our OpCos to track the development of risks, including geopolitical tensions which may arise, leveraging on their local expertise, local familiarity and relations to assess changing scenarios continually. In ensuring business resilience amidst any instability, all OpCos are equipped with a comprehensive Business Continuity Plan (BCP) to ensure business continuity in the event of a crisis.
To manage and maintain good relationships with our broader stakeholders, we adopt a neutral stance towards politics and foster healthy relations with the governments of the day. To further demonstrate our long-term commitment to the markets, we also contribute to the country’s wellbeing through various CSR programmes that drive socioeconomic development.
Our efforts in political risk mitigation have resulted in better monitoring processes of key political and geopolitical events as well as improvements in anticipating emerging risks.
Our material matters are determined through a bi-yearly process of materiality assessment, detailed below:
We review and update our material matters in response to changes in our business landscape, risk environment, internal policies, KPIs, emerging local and global sustainability trends, regulatory developments and stakeholder opinions. Our review also incorporates peer benchmarking.
We conducted a structured stakeholder prioritisation exercise by leveraging insights from our dialogue with various stakeholders on our material matters. This allows us to identify the influence and dependence of key stakeholders on the Group. We then engage with the prioritised stakeholders to obtain their feedback on material matters.
Upon identification of our material matters, we conducted workshops within the Group to further prioritise materiality matters from the business perspective.
