John Oliphant, chairman of a stakeholder committee that drafted the Code last year, said CRISA aims to provide the South African investment community with the guidance it needs to meet various standards set by independent organisations, including the United Nations-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) initiative.
“The Code is the next step in ensuring that institutional investors actually implement policies that guide their day to day actions when it comes to responsible investing,” Oliphant, who is also Head of Investments and Actuarial at the Government Employees Pension Fund, added.
Noting that responsible investing and corporate governance guidelines in South Africa are largely voluntary, Oliphant said the new Code “aims to put in place the checks and balances needed to make this voluntary framework successful”.
Endorsing the Code
CRISA has been endorsed by the Institute of Directors in Southern Africa (IoDSA), the Principal Officers Association (POA), and the Association for Savings and Investment South Africa (ASISA). The principles of CRISA are supported by the Financial Services Board (FSB) and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).
To download the Code go to www.iodsa.co.za, www.asisa.org.za or www.unpri.org.
