Rotana Corporate Sustainability Report 2017

67 OUR COMMITMENT • We will instil a culture of sustainability through education and promotion of sustainability values and principles within our local community. • We will contribute to the society we work and live in by supporting local community needs and promoting sustainability and the cultural values of our society. • We will contribute to local and national economic development through local employment and the promotion and growth of sustainable tourism. OUR FOCUS AND KEY ACHIEVEMENTS Community Outreach Our colleagues have contributed with 78,531 volunteering hours to the community till the end of 2017. To date, our colleagues have participated in 1,352 community engagement activities since 2012. 2,740 colleagues have donated 812 litres of blood during 74 blood donations campaigns; 64.4% of our activities have supported health and well being causes, 20.4% environmental causes and 7% supporting human rights issues. In the last 2 years, 274 organisations have benefited from our contributions, 202 of those in the UAE . In 2016, we increased the total value of our contributions in the form of cash, in kind, colleagues volunteering and fund raising by 4% vs 2015. The communities in which we operate provide the resources, infrastructure and markets that support our businesses. It is our responsibility and to our mutual benefit to contribute to and seek to enhance these. Our various social responsibility and community engagement programmes have made meaningful contributions to the communities in the countries where we operate. Till the end of 2017, 1,352 activities were implemented in our hotels and 78,531 volunteering hours were contributed by our colleagues by engaging more with our communities and responding to their needs in a strategic, relevant and focused way. Our total contribution to local communities reached USD 2 million. Our Communities