According to its recently released 2023 Sustainability Report, almost $12 billion generated by Barrick’s mines last year remained in the countries in which it operates.
The report covers all aspects of Barrick’s sustainability approach, including community and people, workplace health and safety, human rights, governance, and the environment.
In 2023, 97 per cent of Barrick employees were host country nationals and $43 million was invested by the company’s community development committees.
The funds have been put towards strengthening communities with support in education, healthcare, food security, the environment, infrastructure and local economic development.
On the safety front, there was a 21 per cent year-on-year improvement in Barrick’s lost time injury frequency rate with total injuries reducing from 2022.
“Our safety performance has been given additional focused attention with the establishment of new group-wide safety protocols to drive fatal risks down and achieve the zero target we have set ourselves,” Barrick president and chief executive Mark Bristow said.
Barrick also spent 2023 achieving the greenhouse gas reduction goal it has targeted for 2025, with emissions now cut by 16 per cent against its 2018 baseline.
Barrick said it will continue to reduce these emissions, with the long-term goal to be net-zero by 2050.
Bristow said real, tangible sustainability can only be achieved through a holistic approach aligned to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.
“Barrick’s distinctive approach to sustainability has evolved over many years, guided by the operational experience gained at its worldwide operations, the partnership philosophy at the heart of its business and the company’s belief that all stakeholders should benefit from the value it creates,” Bristow said.
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