Counting down the stars of the green carpet

The Group had officially announced the closing of entries to the very first Arabia Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Awards on 15th August 2008.

The task is now passed onto the distinguished panel of international experts to identify the first set of winners for the three categories.

The Awards is under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai.

The banner of the Awards is held high along with the support extended by the United Nations Global Compact, the largest and one of the most influential voluntary corporate citizenship networks in the world.

At the heart of the initiative are objectives linking the growth of CSR in the Region with the push for corporate good practice globally, and identifying on-the-ground leadership and innovation.

Mrs. Habiba Al Marashi, Chairperson of EEG and Board member of UN Global Compact said:

"The response has been overwhelming, it is the quality that we are searching for, not just the quantity, and we have managed to get it. The participants are the elite of the CSR movement in the region, choosing only three winners is definitely going to be a demanding task indeed. They will serve as inspirations to all those who undertook missions towards greater sustainability."

Earlier this year, EEG launched the Arabia CSR Awards as a natural progression from having established an active interface with the business and corporate sector for over a decade.

This award will give much-deserved recognition to companies who are leading the CSR movement in the Region.

To date, the Awards have received a field of entries from all countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

These submissions represent diverse sectors ranging from construction, retail, food and beverage to consultancy and logistics.

The winners of the Awards shall be publicly announced in a ceremony in Dubai on October 26th.