KUWAIT: Reinforcing its commitment to creating a meaningful impact on the environment and the communities it serves, Boursa Kuwait has entered into a strategic partnership with the Environmental Voluntary Foundation's Kuwait Dive Team and its efforts to clean up the Kuwait Bay, considered one of the richest, most diverse marine ecosystems in the world.

The Kuwait Bay is an important source of nutrients and sediment to the upper part of the Arabian Gulf and supports a thriving fishing industry with more than 500 metric tons of sea bream production each year from more than 80 net-pen cages. The Bay is also one of the main contributors to the Kuwaiti economy and one of the world's biggest fish habitats.

As part of its corporate social responsibility and overarching corporate sustainability (CS) strategy, Boursa Kuwait is proud to partner with the Environmental Voluntary Foundation's Kuwait Dive Team in reviving one of the world's most diverse marine environments.

Boursa Kuwait was on hand to support the Environmental Voluntary Foundation's Kuwait Dive Team on World Cleanup Day, a UN sponsored initiative to clean up the world's seas and surrounding beaches, with over 180 countries and over 21 million volunteers participating in 2019. The initiative is celebrated this year on September 19 and is one of several initiatives to draw attention to litter solutions, partnering with multiple organizations worldwide. The event also marked the maiden voyage of the Boursa Boat, which was dedicated to the Kuwait Dive Team to help preserve Kuwait's marine life and environment.

The Boursa Boat will be the exclusive boat for all operations of Kuwait Dive Team in the Kuwait Bay area and is equipped with special equipment to remove wrecked sea vessels, abandoned fishing nets and other marine debris; install and maintain environmentally friendly anchors; monitor coral reefs; clean shores, islands and beaches; as well as document marine life.

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Naser Meshari Al-Sanousi, Marketing and Communication Director at Boursa Kuwait, said: "Boursa Kuwait is proud to join the Environmental Voluntary Foundation's Kuwait Dive Team in their many initiatives and activities to clean up and preserve the marine environment of Kuwait Bay, which is one of the main drivers of the national economy and a valuable resource to Kuwait and the Arabian Gulf."

Sanousi added, "Boursa Kuwait is committed to promoting the adoption of socially impactful and accountable practices in surrounding communities, and this initiative is in-line with our directive to raise awareness in Kuwait and the surrounding communities on the best practices to raise awareness to issues of financial literacy and social responsibility as well as adopting effective practices to increase awareness, reduce harm and preserve the environment."

"The Kuwait Bay is one of the richest, most diverse ecosystems in the Gulf. The Environmental Voluntary Foundation's Kuwait Dive Team is committed to the preservation of the Bay and the marine creatures living in its coasts and waters. Since 1986, the Kuwait Dive Team has been participating in the protection and rehabilitation of Kuwait's aquatic world through a host of activities including the documentation and protection of coral reefs, beach clean ups, establishing colonies of fish, as well as underwater ship retrieval.

We thank Boursa Kuwait for their partnership in support of our many activities to make sure that the Bay and surrounding islands are kept clean and able to sustain such diverse marine life," said Waleed Abdulrahman Al-Shatti, Vice President, Kuwait Dive Team.

With a view to creating long-term value for the company's stakeholders in the economic, social and environmental dimensions and ensuring that all corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives are aligned with its sustainability objectives, Boursa Kuwait has put in place a three-phased strategy to align, create and integrate.

This strategy stipulates ensuring initiatives apply and fall in line with the company's corporate social responsibility (CSR), creating strong and sustainable partnerships that ultimately achieve success and allow Boursa Kuwait to leverage the capabilities and strengths of organizations that have experience in different fields, and integrating sustainability efforts with the company culture, in order to achieve longevity and an ongoing impact.