A member of Maala
The Psagot Investment House is a member of Maala- a non-profit membership organization whose creation was inspired by the US-based Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) and a growing network of leading corporate citizenship organizations around the world, with which it is affiliated. Ma'ala promotes corporate responsibility and social involvement as an integral part of an advanced management culture and intelligent business strategy.
Donations
A. Donations from Psagot Mutual Funds Ltd. and the Psagot (4A) Maala Mutual Fund
The Psagot Group contributes a share of its financial resources to promoting worthy social goals defined by the company. Since 2004, the Psagot Group has contributed to social goals, out of Psagot Mutual Funds Ltd.'s income from the management of the Psagot mutual fund (4A) Maala (whose investment policy is to invest in stocks issued by corporations appearing in the Maala index).
Psagot Mutual Funds Ltd.'s (hereinafter: “Psagot Mutual Funds") commitment to these contributions appears in the fund's prospectus, which states that as long as it has not been decided to the contrary by the Psagot Mutual Funds Ltd.'s Board of Directors, the company will donate 40% of income obtained from the fund manager's fees, as applicable from time to time. This portion out of the fund manager's fee is allocated to a specialized donation account on a weekly basis.
Psagot Mutual Funds donation committee, headed by Mr. Meir Shani (whose members also include the company's external directors) convenes several times a year to discuss and decide on the allocation of donations.
According to a decision reached by the donations committee for 2004, priority is given to donations promoting education, aiming at promoting and providing equal opportunities to children, teenagers and students with considerable potential coming from disadvantaged populations. In view of this resolution, two “flagship projects” were defined. Psagot accompanies these projects aiming to promote excellence in education, out of the belief that continuous support in selected projects increases the odds of leading a true change and improvement.
Psagotprovides continuous support to a number of projects
I. The Psagot Education Society
CFA - College for all (Psagot Education) is an Israeli non profit organization that operates unique educational centers throughout Israel's economically distressed areas, for children who possess potential for individual and academic excellence. The organization aims to increase the cultural horizons of children and teenagers coming from deprived neighborhoods, to develop leadership skills and a sense of social commitment and to introduce the value of giving top priority to education in the family unit as well as to the parents of the student.
This unique education program is intensive (16 hours a week) and is held throughout the year, including holidays, for ten years (from the third to twelfth grades).
Currently, the society works with over 1,500 students, in activities held in more than 20 centers nationwide. Some 500 students who receive scholarships serve as coaches for children.
II. “After Me to Psagot” (follow me to psagot!)
Aharai! (Follow me!) is a non-profit organization. The organization goal is to develop and cultivate a young leadership cadre among youth from underprivileged communities. These youths will serve as an example to their peers and propel them forward. The program aims to educate and motivate young adults to be involved in society in general, and in their communities in particular, by encouraging them to help themselves on a personal level, whilst being involved in the community as a whole.
Psagot has formed the follow me! Graduates organization – follow me to Psagot – and supports it on an ongoing basis. The graduate's organization accompanies graduates during their military service (mainly by means of assistance with welfare issues), advice and accompaniment of graduates after their discharge, involving education, employment, advanced study and legal advice.
The project's contribution is subject to the principles of Psagot’s social investment policy, reflected as follows:
• Representatives of Psagot Mutual Funds' donation committee participate in the executive management of the Psagot Education Association, and participate when necessary in executive meetings of “follow me!” with a view to extending support as required, to increase involvement and to ensure the regular monitoring of donations as well as to promote the values of these projects.
•The contributions to these projects are subject to routine reporting and inspection as to whether these projects have met targets and are measured in quantative terms - reflected in the work plans of societies submitted to the Psagot Mutual Funds' donations committee on an annual basis. The societies provide Psagot with quarterly / annual reports on how they utilize donations as well as on the projects' progress. These reports are presented to the Psagot's donations committee and are discussed. Each year, the donation committee studies the progress of these projects since Psagot’s support in order to examine the effectiveness of the donations and to reach decisions concerning Psagot's ongoing support and the size of such support.
In addition to the aforementioned, the Psagot Mutual Fund makes one time contributions to other organizations from time to time, after receiving evidence of their operations and after finding them consistent with Psagot's donations policy as mentioned above.
In this context, Psagot Mutual Funds has already donated out of its income a total sum of over NIS 7 million to various organizations and projects that advance the goals and values it has chosen to promote.
B. Other contributions
In addition to Psagot Mutual Funds' budget, Psagot Investment House has a supplemental budget from which it contributes to organizations and projects that do not meet the criteria of Psagot's (4A) Maala Fund in areas dealing with the community, society, education and culture.
• Contributions are made only to registered organizations / companies active in the public's benefit and all required approvals must be provided before a contribution is actually made, subject to the signing of an agreement between Psagot and the organization/company to which contributions are transmitted.
Volunteer work by Psagot's employees
In order that social responsibility can become an integral part of the organization’s DNA, it must be completely and consistently integrated into the organization . In this respectt, the the group's management has since 2004 initiated the integration of Psagot's employees in voluntary activity via the Psagot Education Society. Since then, dozens of employees of the group have taken part in voluntary activity within the society, by providing supplemental lessons to children of the society as well as by holding workshops and lectures to children and their parents.
Apart from these ongoing voluntary efforts, the employees of Psagot participate from time to time in projects that the Psagot Education Society conducts for the children members of the society and their families.
Psagot's involvement in the community in other social projects -
1. Students and graduates of Psagot Education (College for all) are employed in temporary jobs during the summer holiday or between high school graduation and beginning their military service.
The Psagot Group employs the trainees and graduates of College for all in suitable temporary jobs during the summer holiday or between high school graduation and their military service, thereby adding another facet of support to students taking part in the project, both in financial terms and by means of their exposure to the workplace in general and to the capital market in particular.
Psagot stays in constant contact with these boys and girls after their employment with the group. Psagot plans to continue the relations with this group of boys and girls and to seek other ways of involvement and providing assistance to the students participating in the project.
2. Planting of trees in select towns – in 2009, Psagot joined an extensive planting project via which Psagot intends to plant (through the Good Energy Initiative organization) some 5,000 trees in Israel in order to minimize the level of carbon dioxide emissions. Psagot has chosen minimize carbon emissions by planting trees in uncultivated urban areas designated for construction, basing its concept on the social benefits that these trees provide to the community.
3. Rounding Out – Psagot has joined the philanthropic initiative that the Rounding Out Society initiated, enabling employees of the company to contribute to the societies of their choice (out of a select list) by rounding out sums from their salary on a monthly basis. All of these societies have been chosen as worthy of these contributions by a public committee headed by the Retired President of the Supreme Court Meir Shamgar, who successfully passed transparency requirements of the Midot Association (a public benefit company that grades non-profit organizations and assesses the transparency of the society to the general public). For each shekel contributed by a certain employee, Psagot donates another shekel.
4. Some 20,000 Haggadah books were purchased for Passover the income of which is dedicated to autistic children – Psagot purchased more than 20,000 Haggadah books for Passover 2010 that were produced by the Association for Children at Risk, decorated with the paintings produced by autistic children.