3A.1 Stakeholder engagement

Contents in this section:

Guiding principles

The purpose of stakeholder engagement is to build mutually beneficial, long-term relationships with those who are affected by, or who can affect, a site or Anglo American more broadly. The more effectively sites engage, the more able and likely they are to address issues important to stakeholders. This leads to higher levels of trust and acceptance.

Under the Social Way, stakeholder engagement is underpinned by a set of guiding principles. It should be:

Dialogue-based - Stakeholder engagement should create opportunities for a two-way discussion and for stakeholders to input into company decisions that affect their lives. This dynamic is the cornerstone of all aspects of social performance, from discovery through to closure.

Strategic - Engagement should be outcomes based. A site’s potential impacts, risks and long-term objectives should inform engagement priorities and be informed by stakeholder perspectives.

Proactive - Activities should be pre-planned as far as possible. Early and regular communication is critical, allowing space for stakeholders to express any concerns and for the site to adjust its approach accordingly. Communication should provide stakeholders with the necessary information to meaningfully inform their position on issues and policies that affect them and our sites.

Clear and direct - Information relevant to stakeholders should be communicated in ways that the audience will understand, based on their language, education, literacy level, interests and concerns. Engagement should be underpinned by openness and honesty about any potential adverse impacts and include explanations of who may be affected, when and how.

Inclusive - It is important to engage with all affected stakeholders, including vulnerable groups, by using tailored engagement approaches. Engagement approaches should be designed to avoid creating or exacerbating any intra or inter community conflicts or power imbalances in communities.

Ongoing - Engagement is a continuous, regular and iterative process. Reporting back to stakeholders is vital to explain how their feedback and views were considered.

Shared and understood internally - Social Performance teams must be able to translate what they hear ‘outside the fence’ in a manner that resonates with internal management so that engagement results in action.

Key functions of stakeholder engagement

Stakeholder engagement fulfils several important functions. Sites should consider the areas depicted in Figure 3A.1 when planning their engagement activities.

Figure 3A.1 Functions of stakeholder engagement

Multi-disciplinary approach

Successful stakeholder engagement is a site-wide responsibility. While the Social Performance team will have lead responsibility for most local external relationships, some will be held by other departments. Clarity about the primary ‘relationship-holder’ and co-ordination between teams requires ongoing collaboration. Table 3A.1 provides examples of what this might look like in practice.

Sites are required to develop a cross-functional Stakeholder Engagement Plan (SEP). This will ensure sites maintain a comprehensive record of stakeholders and engagement activities.

The Social Performance Management Committee (SPMC) (see Section 1) serves as the primary mechanism for co-ordinating this cross-cutting and multi-departmental approach to stakeholder engagement.

Site teams should ensure that responsibilities for engaging with regional and national level stakeholders relevant to the site’s area of influence are clearly understood and aligned across different levels of the organisation (for example, with the communications and government relations teams at Country and Group level).

Table 3A.1 Examples of cross-functional collaboration on stakeholder engagement

Department	Stakeholders	Supporting department	Supporting role in relation to stakeholders
Social Performance	Affected communities (individuals and households) Traditional leaders Community groups and civil-society organisations Political leaders Administrative authorities Vulnerable groups SED partners Local NGOs Artisanal and small-scale miners Social infrastructure and service providers Opportunistic migrants Local education providers Religious or faith-based institutions/organisations	Human Resources Security SHE Communications Operations/technical teams Government Relations	Information on environmental, health and safety impact and risk management Operational updates Explaining technical policies, plans or procedures relevant to external stakeholders Details of recruitment and procurement opportunities and requirements Permitting/ regulatory updates
Human Resources	Workforce Labour unions Contractor workforce Government labour agencies	Social Performance SHE	Information on job opportunities – both numbers and skill levels required Ensuring clarity, balance and fairness in local recruitment
Security	Police Military Security contractors Emergency service providers	Social Performance Human Resources SHE Supply Chain Government Relations	Communicating security arrangements and procedures Ensuring respectful and appropriate behaviour towards local communities
Supply Chain	Local businesses and business associations Site suppliers Contractors and sub-contractors	Social Performance All departments in determining the criteria for contractors and suppliers	Opportunities to provide goods and services Capacity-building on procurement requirements and how to understand supplier criteria
Safety and Sustainable Development	Government authorities and regulatory bodies Health agencies Emergency service providers	Social Performance All departments in following SHE protocols	Environmental impacts – identification, management and monitoring Road traffic safety Health and safety advice and warnings Emergency preparedness and response protocols
Communications	Media (radio, TV, newspapers, social media)	Social Performance All departments in providing technical information for communication	Communication of policies, procedures, safety protocols, etc. Design of materials to communicate technical information Planning and hosting events
Operations/ technical teams	Contractors and suppliers Employees	Social Performance SHE Human Resources	Long-term business goals, specifically Life of Asset Plan Project schedules and activities (e.g. construction, drilling, blasting)
Government Relations (Country level function)	Government ministries Regulator	All Government Relations	Communication of government laws and regulations

Lifecycle planning

Stakeholder engagement is a requirement at all stages of the asset lifecycle from discovery through to closure and post-closure. The scale, depth and nature of the engagement with stakeholders will fluctuate according to the precise stage, planned activities and the level of a site's impacts.

During discovery, the focus of engagement activities will be on doing a preliminary mapping of stakeholders, including identifying potentially vulnerable groups and Indigenous Peoples; explaining the mining process to stakeholders (who may have had little experience with the industry), including being transparent about potential impacts, risks and opportunities; and managing expectations.

During project development, it is likely there will be heightened stakeholder expectations about the future development of the site, requiring more in-depth engagement. Engagement during this phase will need to support other key processes and activities being undertaken, such as: regulatory and permitting processes¹; environmental and social impact assessments; land-acquisition processes and management programmes for physical and economic displacement; influx management; and early development and implementation of SED projects/programmes. Project development construction is likely to require extensive engagement with stakeholders on impacts and benefits and to address incidents and grievances. This will continue during operations ‒ though, if properly managed, the level of potential impacts and risks should stabilise during operations.

Local Accountability Mechanisms (see 3A.2 Guidance, Task 5) should be established by Feasibility Stage of project development.

3A.1 Introduction

3A.1 Introduction