Just Released: 2019 Novartis in Society Report, Detailing Progress Made on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Topics

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Summary

For the seventh consecutive year, Novartis is publishing an annual Novartis in Society ESG report. The report has been prepared in accordance with the GRI Standards: Core option.  It supplements the “Build trust with society” section in the 2019 Novartis Annual Review and the 2019 Novartis Annual Report.

Report Highlights

February 3, 2020 - For the seventh consecutive year, Novartis is publishing an annual Novartis in Society ESG report. The report has been prepared in accordance with the GRI Standards: Core option.  It supplements the “Build trust with society” section in the 2019 Novartis Annual Review and the 2019 Novartis Annual Report.

The report is divided into four chapters based on our corporate responsibility (CR) material clusters and the global health and CR strategic priorities: holding ourselves to the highest ethical standards; being part of the solution on pricing and access; addressing global health challenges; and being a responsible citizen. In each chapter, readers will find more focused and contextual information about the priority topics arising from our CR materiality assessment.

2019 HIGHLIGHTS

Access

• 16 million patients reached through access programs
• 10 million people with reached training and health education
• 300 000 patients reached with over 90 local brands for some of our most advanced medicines
• 4.5 million monthly treatments for chronic diseases delivered to 12 lower-income countries through Novartis Access since launch
• New strategy to reach more patients in sub-Saharan Africa with our portfolio of medicines

Global health

• First-of-its-kind public-private partnership for the holistic management of sickle cell disease in Ghana
• First-ever clinical trial to expand treatment options for people with Chagas-related heart disease
• Strategic alliance with Microsoft and Oswlado Cruz Foundation to use artificial intelligence to improve leprosy detection
• Development of a new formulation of our antimalarial for infants weighing less than 5 kilograms

Ethics and compliance

• 500 associates volunteered to co-create the Novartis Code of Ethics to be launched in 2020
• Global rollout of our Third-party Risk Management program completed
• Five-year human rights strategy introduced

Responsible citizenship

• 80 000 tonnes reduction of carbon emissions (Scope 1 and 2) versus 2016
• Novartis Plastic-Free Workplace to phase out single-use plastics at all Novartis sites by 2021
• Global guidelines providing at least 14 weeks’ paid leave for all parents regardless of gender, after the birth or adoption of a child
• USD 100 million to be invested over the next five years in expanding learning opportunities for our associates

Download the 2019 Novartis in Society ESG Report  

For more information on our corporate responsibility activities, visit our website.

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