BAT Bangladesh, the century-old organization formerly known as the Imperial Tobacco Company is listed on both the Dhaka and Chittagong Stock Exchanges, and is currently ranked third in terms of market capitalization. BAT Bangladesh, a subsidiary of British American Tobacco Group, has a wide range of heritage brands including the likes of Benson & Hedges and John Player.

The Company’s approach to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) considerations include sustaining its robust governance systems and controls, investing in employees, and fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment. BAT Bangladesh firmly believes in providing consumers with choice, strengthening partnerships with local communities, and integrating sustainability into the fabric of its day to day operations.

BAT Bangladesh has a proud legacy of partnering with their leaf suppliers and contributing to their socio-economic progress by offering sustainable agriculture solutions. BAT Bangladesh has undertaken manifold initiatives to inform its farmers about various environment-friendly, sustainable agricultural techniques for improving soil fertility, conserving water, and combating pollution.

BAT Bangladesh works directly with more than 35,000 farmers, concentrating more than 70 percent of its annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)initiatives under the Environment Restoration, Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Communities theme. BAT Bangladesh’s flagship CSR initiative, Bonayan, has distributed nearly 110 million saplings free of cost across the country. 

This initiative, in collaboration with the Government of Bangladesh’s Forest Department, plays a significant role in the socio-economic development of the country and contributes towards 6 out of 17 UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Bonayan is the proud winner of the prestigious Prime Minister’s Award, the Chief Advisor’s Award, and the Asia Responsible Enterprise Award (2014) along with many other significant local and international awards.

Other programs in BAT Bangladesh’s CSR portfolio include Probaho, a project aimed at providing safe drinking water free from arsenic and other impurities to the rural communities in Bangladesh. Another notable project, Deepto, generates solar electricity to the households of off-grid remote villages in the Chattogram hill tracts. 

BAT Bangladesh has also successfully popularized Green Manuring, which is an effective approach in enriching soil health and fertility in a bio-friendly manner, amongst farmers since 2000. The Company has also been broadening the horizons of its Integrated Pest Management (IPM) clubs in leaf growing areas, in collaboration with the Government of Bangladesh’s Department of Agricultural Extension, to educate the farmers in implementing non-chemical alternatives in pest management for all kinds of crops.