BOREALIS SOCIAL
INVESTMENT
SOLUTION
Contribution
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Project
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Building
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Social
Investment
module
This solution allows companies to follow up on local social support networks and to set up contribution programs (e.g. contributions to primary schools) often put in place by foundations connected to the extractive company.
- Supports the development of personal expertise among affected communities
- Integrated management of contribution opportunities
- Contributes to improved trust and respect between the company and the communities
- Increases community capacities and helps local people adapt to the project
- Mitigates risks and secures a social license to operate
- Ensures a transparent decision-making process aligned with social investment and strategic targets.
- Leverages company and contractor capabilities and skills to deliver community benefits
What is Social Investment?
According to the United Nations Global Compact, "Social investment is the practice of making voluntary financial and non-financial contributions that demonstrably help local communities and broader societies to address their development priorities."
Why is it important to address Social Investment?
For communities:
The communities affected by extractive projects welcome and expect social investment initiatives from companies. Often, these social development programs represent significant progress in terms of livelihoods, education, health and economic improvements, especially in poor areas with weak governance. Strategic community investment that encourages partnerships between communities and local governments increases the strength and effectiveness of communities and enables people to achieve long-term control over their lives.
For the project's developers:
Lenders often require social investment in order to give financial support to a project. In some cases, social investment is also a contractual obligation of host governments in the countries in which the projects are developed. Creating social investment programs and putting them in place is extremely important for extractive companies in order for them to acquire and retain their "social license to operate."
The three components of Borealis Social Investment Software
Community Contribution
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Assessment
Taking into account criteria set-up by the company, data linked to contribution requests analysis.
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Committee approval meeting
Preparation of all kinds of useful tools (budget, progress reports, etc.) in order to help the committee in its decision-making regarding community assistance programs.
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Budget
Monitor each financial parameter and quotas in relation to social investment activities.
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Foundation fundraising campaigns
Fundraising campaign organization and process support.
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Performance indicators and reporting
Creation of different kinds of reports in real time in order to verify and follow up on financial quality control for auditing.
Community Projects
For extractive companies, putting community projects in place with a sustainable and long-term perspective requires a strong understanding of the social and economic relationships between the project and the surrounding communities. To do so, it is crucial to implement monitoring and evaluation and tracking mechanisms in order to address these issues in a transparent and rigorous way.
Moreover, the number of stakeholders involved in the decision or execution of these community projects can easily become numerous and difficult to manage. Therefore, putting in place a community projects module can become a useful tool in order to manage these relationships and ensure that the budget is spent in a manner that respects local community needs. The financial aspects of community projects are tracked through the previous contribution component.
- Monitoring of stakeholder participation in the project for the creation of community initiatives.
- Project management and tracking of the different community project contractors: construction, expenses, qualifications, contract specifications, etc.
- Systematic tracking of community project performance and impacts.
Capacity building
This component facilitates the tracking of activities (training, mentoring, coaching, etc.) offered to increase the skills and capabilities of individuals or communities in order to help them with their daily practices (agriculture, finances, household budget, etc.).
- Training register (people sorted by capacity-building activities)
- Assessment of training outcomes
- Monitoring
