The global population has coped with the COVID-19 pandemic, which abruptly challenged the way of life of the society as well as its members, forcing all of us to adapt to the new normal. Similarly, the business community has endured such hinderance and needed to muster its resilience to survive in the era of uncertainty.

Singha Estate spent much of the year 2020 to re-strategize and shift its paradigm to emerge on the other side of the crisis with our business intact and prompt to build further growth. In the facet of good corporate governance, Singha Estate established a solid foundation via issuance of significant policies in different aspects of its business and launched various related initiatives in the organization and by collaboration with third parties. These projects shall further strengthen the fundamental of the Company as it ventures into volatile future.

While the world is grappling with the COVID-19 situation, we notice positive changes that has bloomed in the environment and ecosystem. Once human traveling activity is restricted and economic activities decline, nature immediately shows robust sign of recovery in response to the receding resource consumption and greenhouse gas emission. These efforts could be short-lived; and it is thus the duty of all humans to gain the momentum of the environment protection efforts and turn them into the constant progress on the path to sustainability.

It was inevitable that certain hotels of Singha Estate were temporarily closed, however, the business halt at CROSSROADS in the Republic of Maldives brought about the first-ever appearance of 10 more species in the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List (IUCN Red List), and gave us a chance to welcome the “olive ridley sea turtle”—a rare turtle species, which laid eggs on CROSSROADS beach for the first time since the project commencement. This was a proud evidence of our endeavor to preserve the nature in every location in which we set foot; and it was heartwarmingly rewarding to watch such efforts bearing fruitful results.

A life bound to the urban area among heightened health and safety care measures nevertheless resulted in substantial increase of single-use waste during the COVID-19 pandemic. Singha Estate, a leading real estate developer, closely observed the environmental risk exposure and responded by prioritizing its sustainable goal in line with the SDG 12: Responsible consumption and production. The Company collaborated with the public and private sectors via the Thailand Responsible Business Network (TRBN) to manage waste from the urban communities, office buildings, and our construction projects along with finetuning the mindset of our staff through various initiatives and communicating with the public via green media such as the “get off, get rid, get it right” campaign. As a result, we successfully enhanced efficiency of recycling waste sorting by 30.67 percent of total waste volume. In addition, the Company extended the carbon evaluation scope to ensure a more comprehensive coverage to all business units in accordance with its intent and initiatives relating to waste and greenhouse gas emission initiated by the Company.

The sustainability goal of Singha Estate for 2021 will elevate our sustainable practices and expand in all dimensions. We focus on dissemination of understanding as well as promotion of employee participation, collaboration within the supply chain, and real estate development in compliance with international sustainable standards. Furthermore, the Sustainable Development Committee endorsed the 5-year plan in alignment with the new vision of the Company, focusing on earning trust of stakeholders while enriching life and upholding the harmonious coexistence philosophy. The main goal of the Company is set forth in line with the SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities.

Due to the current situation, Singha Estate is well aware that its role on social and environmental responsibility is an ongoing engagement. We have been consecutively listed in the “Thailand Sustainability Investment 2020” (THSI) by the Stock Exchange of Thailand; and we were continuously awarded the 5-star level of the Corporate Governance Report (CGR) for the second year. It is my great pleasure to extend congratulations to S Hotels and Resorts Public Company Limited (SHR), a subsidiary of Singha Estate Group, for its first year of winning the Asia Responsible Enterprise Awards 2020 in the category of regional green leadership from Enterprise Asia. SHR was recognized in its years of efforts to preserve marine biodiversity via various initiatives, including the establishment of the marine learning center — Marine Discovery Center (MDC).

At the end of the day, be it any situation, I am confident that our adherence to sustainability as the key to development will serve as a constant reminder of our responsibility to adapt and to be resilient in driving changes for the better business, society, and environment while sustaining harmonious co-existence and lasting success.