The complete foreword by CRISA Chairman, John Oliphant

Significant progress has been made in the decade since the launch of the initial CRISA Code in 2011. Globally we have seen considerable focus on the importance of effective stewardship and responsible investment for improved outcomes for investors, society and the planet. Most recently, the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and its establishment of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB)1 to develop a comprehensive global baseline of sustainability-related disclosure standards providing investors and other stakeholders with information about companies’ sustainability-related risks and opportunities, is just one example of how mainstream the demand for high-quality, transparent, reliable and comparable reporting by companies on climate and other environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters has become.

At the heart of CRISA when it was launched in 2011 was the recognition of the importance of integrating sustainability issues, including ESG, into long-term investment strategies. Our commitment then and now was to highlight the critically important stewardship role that institutional investors, as long-term investors and fiduciaries, have towards investing responsibly in a way that promotes the long-term sustainability of our clients’ investments, our society and our planet.

CRISA 2 remains a voluntary code containing five principles that are capable of universal relevance and flexible application, as the context may require, by asset owners, asset managers and service provider organisations within the investment value chain who wish to voluntarily align themselves with the principles.

With the launch of CRISA in 2011, South Africa became the first emerging-market country to issue a stewardship code2. Today, the International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN) lists 223 domestic stewardship codes around the world, including CRISA. As of September 2022, the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) now counts a global signatory base of just over 5 000 signatories collectively representing more than USD120 trillion of assets under management. The collaborative nature of PRI as platform supported by the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) made it possible to put asset owners at the forefront of the “Race to Zero” campaign on climate change. The Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance consists of asset owners representing more than USD5 trillion and growing, who have pledged to make their portfolios net-zero of emissions by 2050. We have come a long way since the early days of CRISA and PRI. Regulation 28, Guidance Note 1 of 2019 and National Treasury’s Sustainable Finance Initiative continue to build on the foundations set in 2011.

However, despite the successes and progress achieved in the last decade, there is still much work to be done. The triple ills of poverty, inequality and unemployment, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and recent global events require our collective and urgent action. CRISA 2 aims to spur much-needed impetus towards achieving positive outcomes to address South Africa’s unique environmental and social challenges, as part of the delivery of inclusive, cost-effective, relevant and transparent financial services and products to benefit our clients and beneficiaries.

I therefore urge all stakeholders involved in the investment industry to pledge their support for CRISA 2.
My sincere thanks and appreciation to my fellow CRISA Committee members, the CRISA Code Review Working Group tasked with developing CRISA 2, and the CRISA Secretariat for their combined efforts which have culminated in the launch of CRISA 2.

John Oliphant
Executive Chairman: All Weather Capital and Third Way Asset Management Group

The CRISA 2 Code titled “The Second Code for Responsible Investing in South Africa “CRISA 2” can be downloaded here. 

Additional CRISA 2 information is available via https://www.crisa2.co.za/