Corporate Social Responsibility2017
Message
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Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
NAKATOMI, Hirotaka
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President & Chief Operating Officer
NAKATOMI, Kazuhide
Commitments in our Medium-term Management Policy
Since our foundation in 1847, Hisamitsu has now marked its 170th Anniversary. This has been achieved thanks to all of our stakeholders who have generously given us their support, for which we are truly grateful. Based on our corporate philosophy of “Delivering a Better QOL to the World,” we are endeavoring to fulfill our corporate mission to “Promoting Patch Treatment Culture Worldwide.” We will continue to make strides toward realizing this mission.
The world today is undergoing a major transformation. The term “globalization” is commonly used, and the rising number of foreign tourists coming to Japan and the inbound consumption they bring is greatly impacting the Japanese economy. In the past year, we’ve seen a change in consumer behavior where people are spending less on tangible goods and more on intangible things such as tourism. This has resulted in large numbers of foreign tourists visiting not only major Japanese cities, but also regions outside of these cities.
In the medical field, there are growing trends toward medical tourism and medical service exports beyond domestic medical assistance offered by foreign countries. Pharmaceutical development is also being conducted with a global business vision. This has resulted in a series of new developments in medical technology, which are helping to conquer many diseases and conditions. Even with these advances, it is a fact that many people are still not able to enjoy “inner fulfillment” and “happiness.”
We intend to make our 170th anniversary a starting point for a new approach to our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities, keeping in mind the roles and responsibilities we should fulfill to help resolve the many issues faced by society.
Commitments in our Medium-term Management Policy
In addition to how we will develop our business activities, we announced our direction for promoting Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) in our 6th Medium-term Management Policy, released in April 2017.
Around the world, it is a growing belief that integrating the three core elements of ESG is necessary to achieve long-term company growth. Also In Japan, the Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) and other investors are practicing ESG investment, which is receiving increasing attention as a metric in corporate evaluations.
Since our foundation, Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Group has been using the concept of “intangible assets” as a shared value. We now feel the need to share these values with all of our stakeholders in a more concretel and visible way.
We also recognize that a management strategy related to business operations and ESG initiatives are essential both to manage risk and to serve as a driver of growth. We at Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Group will clearly express our plans and goals internally and externally and develop comprehensive, proactive initiatives to achieve sustainable development.
Aiming to Increase Environmental and Social Value
The Paris Agreement, established at the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), has been ratified by a large number of countries, and many companies have also announced their own ambitious goals. While there has been some remarks of withdrawal in the political sphere, private companies have quickly moved to address the impact of climate change while striving to achieve both economic and environmental performance, suggesting there is a strong sense of crisis. We at Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Group have been conducting initiatives beyond the legally mandated framework, including incorporating environment friendliness into our procurement and manufacturing processes and reducing the environmental impact of our products. In the coming years, we intend to increase these efforts to reduce our environmental burden.
In terms of social value, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set out by the United Nations are attracting much attention. The SDGs comprise 17 goals and 169 targets (achievement standards), and their achievement requires active participation by companies. Some of the goals and targets are related to our business domain of health and medicine, and we recognize the importance of developing pharmaceutical products with a full understanding of these goals and values that are shared by the world.
In terms of environmental and social value, we do not seek either to “increase corporate value” or “increase social value,” but must do both at the same time. Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Group will continue to pursue both higher corporate and social value, and we will strive to communicate this approach to all of our stakeholders.
We aim for our CSR Report to be a communication tool that prompts higher-level activities while receiving feedback from all of our stakeholders.
We have collaborated with Professor Kiichiro Kobayashi of Keio University, and received guidance from him on Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Group’s future CSR activities.
We have included a feature on PT. Hisamitsu Pharma Indonesia as part of our global initiatives, which were also introduced in last year’s CSR report of last year. We also touch on the energy management system installed at our Utsunomiya Factory.
Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Group is contributing to the development of a sustainable society through business so that we will continue to be a company required in society. If you have any questions or suggestions about the activities outlined in this report, please feel free to contact us. Your feedback is greatly appreciated and will help us to improve the content of future CSR reports.