Mission Statement: to assist the integration of foreign residents living in Spain
By Linda Hall • Published: 31 Dec 2023 • 12:00 • 1 minute read
KIRAN AZIZ: KLP’s head of Responsible Investment Photo credit: KLP
KOMMUNAL LANDSPENSJONSKASSE (KLP), Norway’s largest pension fund, has dropped Saudi Aramco from its portfolio.
The fund was concerned about the oil group’s inaction on climate change and energy transition, announced KLP which manages over $70 billion (€62 billion).
The pension fund has also divested itself of 11 other Gulf companies owing to disquiet regarding their countries’ “unacceptably high human rights violations”, removing holdings worth a total of $15 billion (€13.5 billion).
“The overall rationale for these exclusions is that Gulf states are characterised by authoritarian government systems that restrict freedom of expression and political rights, including those of critics and human rights activists,” Kiran Aziz, head of Responsible Investment at KLP said.
Telecom companies Emirates Telecom, Saudi Telecom, Etihad Etisalat Ooredoo, Mobile Telecommunications Co Saudi Arabia and Kuwait’s Mobile Telecommunications Co were dropped because “the development of advanced technology, including AI, reinforces the ongoing risk of systematic surveillance and censorship,” Aziz added.
Neither had reforms gone far enough in the building, construction and property sectors, KLP said, and migrant workers from Africa and Asia had to face discrimination and human rights violations.
This had led to the decision to exclude Emaar Properties, Aldar Properties, Dar Al Arkan Real Estate Development, Mabanee Co and Barwa Real Estate, the pension fund said.
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Originally from the UK, Linda is based in Valenca province and is a reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering local news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com.
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