"This calendar year, we had more than 700 active suppliers and we sourced products and services worth AED 4.1 billion from them. More than 80% of these were local suppliers (i.e. companies with their headquarters in the UAE). We also worked with 10 Emirati SMEs during the year from whom we purchased AED 14 million worth of goods and services.

It is extremely important for us to manage the social and environmental impacts of our vendor base as it helps us expand our sustainability vision and policies across our supply chain. Key to helping us manage the sustainability of our suppliers is our Sourcing Policy which ensures that all dealings with our vendors are fair, competitive and without any conflict of interest. Our Sourcing Policy handbook was updated in 2019 to improve efficiency and controls, and to cater to system requirements for better automation. 

Our Sourcing Policy is complemented by our Sustainable Environmental Procurement Policy which obliges our current and prospective suppliers to complete our HSE requirements. In 2019, 100% of our vendors conformed to our HSE screening criteria upon registration. We were not made aware of any significant negative environmental or labour impacts within our supply chain."
(Page 87 of Company Annual Report 2019)