Supporting society’s development is extremely important for modern companies. The greatest value in terms of support is investing in the future of the community, more precisely in young people who are the driving force behind our society’s development. Projects that improve health, elevate ecological awareness and environmental protection, support educational and scientific institutions, care for sensitive groups and deal with topics that are essential for improving the life of the local community are extremely important, too.
More and more companies are adopting this modern business philosophy. In this way, companies share their business successes with the community, to which they return part of their profits. At the same time, they also enjoy numerous benefits – first and foremost, a better reputation. A caring attitude towards the community has a positive effect on the loyalty and motivation of employees, attracting new employees to the company, boosting the reputation of the company and its brands in the public, and many other benefits.
We can see good examples of socially responsible businesses in the world and more of them in our country. One of them is the NIS Company, which is celebrating an important anniversary this year, i.e. its most important CSR programme – Common Cause Community – is celebrating its 15th anniversary and continuously investing in partner cities and municipalities. This programme is not only unique in that it has been implemented for a decade and a half, but it is also one-of-a-kind in the number of communities with which it has forged partnerships and whose development it encourages, as well as the variety of topics it focuses on and the accomplished result.
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The Common Cause Community programme is implemented in 13 partner cities and municipalities all over Serbia, in which the NIS Company carries out most of its business activities and in whose development the company has invested over 1.7 billion dinars in the previous 15 years. Listening intently to the needs of fellow citizens, the Programme focuses on areas essential for the development of society, such as science and education, public health and social protection, environmental protection, culture and sports and support for young people.
In this jubilee year, the programme has a record budget of 144.5 million dinars for the implementation of 54 projects related to science and education, whose goal is to improve conditions for the education of young people and to support the work of scientific institutions so that scientists can develop their full potential. This year’s programme is implemented by NIS in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation of the Republic of Serbia. Thanks to the projects that will be implemented in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš, Čačak, Kikinda, Pančevo, Zrenjanin, Požarevac, Kanjiža, Srbobran, Novi Bečej, Žitište and Veliko Gradište, many students and scientists will be able to enjoy significantly better learning and research conditions, with additional incentive in the shape of new and modern equipment that will help them to apply and further improve their knowledge.
The results achieved by the Common Cause Community programme over the past 15 years are impressive. We helped over 180 educational institutions, 40 cultural institutions and 45 hospitals and health centers. We donated 14 medical and patrol vehicles and improved over 150 playgrounds, parks, sports fields and facilities. NIS is extremely proud of the partnerships it nurtures with local communities, 1,136 implemented projects during the 15 years of the programme and numerous awards and recognitions, which compel the company to keep community support as one of its strategic priorities in the future, too.
NIS
Read the story in the new issue of the Energy portal Magazine RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS
