JEDDAH, 29 October 2006 — The Savola Group, one of the largest business conglomerates in Saudi Arabia, has appointed a Saudi woman as manager of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) and communication departments. Faten Al-Yafi is now the highest-ranking female employee of Savola though other women hold top management and consultant jobs in the group.

The company policy is to hire the most qualified individual regardless of sex. “It is a great opportunity to work for a company that values social responsibility and aims to contribute by developing society and being an active participant in social progress,” Al-Yafi told Arab News.

In a statement released yesterday, Savola announced Al-Yafi’s joining the group as manager of CSR and communication; her brief is to work toward bolstering the company’s relationship with society and balance its interests with those of the shareholders. “Al-Yafi is a distinguished addition to the group’s activities in the area of social responsibility and communication. She is highly qualified and efficient in the fields of volunteer services and social development. She has also had a distinguished academic career,” the statement said.

Previous positions held by Al-Yafi include director of women’s administration at the Makkah Region Health Affairs, director of PR and later financial affairs at King Abdul Aziz University and assistant to the dean for government and public affairs at Effat College. She is also an active member of several scientific, professional and social societies in Saudi Arabia and abroad.

“I have been involved in volunteer work since I was very young. This has remained a part of my career and I consider social participation a duty. In Savola there is an opportunity to do more, especially in areas that the company is focusing on, such as helping orphans and people with special needs become financially independent and productive,” Al-Yafi explained.

For Savola, CSR means open and transparent business practices based on ethical values and respect for employees, communities and the environment. It is designed to deliver sustainable value to society at large as well as to share holders.

Savola has identified nine areas for its CSR efforts comprising various educational, social and training initiatives, which have been selected based on The Savola Group experience and expertise.

The areas are: social education, service learning, professor sponsorship, ethics and values training, assisting special needs, education for civil servants, national employment, training new graduates and micro financing.

Savola’s most recent agreements in this area have been with Jeddah Institute for Speech and Hearing to supply internal hearing aids and also with the Printing Education Center to train 30 orphans as printers.