Strategy
The corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy of the A1 company was presented in 2014. It is based on the aspiration to contribute to solving societal problems and to provide assistance to those who need it most. To achieve this, the company uses not only its own resources and capabilities, but also strives to attract the widest possible range of its subscribers and residents of Belarus in general to the ideas of charity and socially responsible behavior.
When developing A1's CSR strategy, the opinions and preferences of the company's employees were taken into account. They suggested the areas of social policy they considered to be the most significant. A1's CSR strategy was revised and expanded in 2019.
Directions
The priority areas of A1's corporate social responsibility strategy are helping children, supporting national self-identification, and green living.
Many of A1's CSR projects are charitable in nature and are aimed at helping various social and medical institutions. The company strives to provide the same opportunity, i.e., to help those who need support, to all its subscribers, offering convenient and user-friendly tools for that purpose.
Help for the children
100 hours with A1
A new large-scale charity program was initiated by A1 and is carried out in tandem with the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Belarus. Every concerned individual can challenge themselves and train for at least 100 hours within 50 days. By doing speed walking, swimming, jogging or cycling within that period, each participant in the sports challenge supports the Republican Clinical Center for Palliative Medical Care for Children.
The First
The competition is held for students of 9th, 10th and 11th grades. Students from all over Belarus share their vision of how to change the life around them for the better. Any high school student can come up with a specific idea on culture, ecology, technology or inclusion and get a chance to present it in the world famous TED format. That way they can gain some inspiring experience and become the voice of the generation.
А1 Junior
A1 has teamed up with the Junior football club to create a joint A1 Junior sports brand. This is the first large-scale collaboration between business and children and youth teams in the country. A1's support and active participation in the club's life expands the team's capabilities and helps it train and perform at a qualitatively new level.
National identity
#UNOVIS100
2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the famous UNOVIS creative association, created in Vitebsk on the initiative of Kazimir Malevich. Thanks to this event, Belarus is known worldwide as a country where outstanding people who changed the history of art lived and worked. UNOVIS and its artists - Kazimir Malevich, Lazar Lissitzky, Lazar Khidekel, David Yakerson and others - stand for a Belarusian brand of international importance. Returning their names and works to their historical homeland is one of the main tasks of the #UNOVIS100 project, which A1 launched specifically for the anniversary of the association in tandem with its partners.
MOVA
This project embodies everything that distinguishes Belarus from other countries where the international A1 holding is present. It combines the latest technologies with contemporary art. The letter sculptures spelling "MOVA" installed in Brest, Vitebsk, Grodno, Gomel and Mogilev remind the people living in these cities of the beauty of their mother tongue. The colors of each art object reflect the cultural and natural characteristics of the region.
100th Anniversary of the Yanka Kupala National Academic Theater
Supporting projects dealing with national identity, Belarusian language and culture is one of the priority areas of A1's social policy. For the Kupala Theater, this is the mission chosen by its founders a century ago. Therefore, it is not surprising that the 100th anniversary season of one of the country's oldest drama theaters was supported by the company. One of the most striking joint projects for the 100th anniversary was a series of free live broadcasts on the VOKA video service.
Classics at the Town Hall with A1
A1’s desire to represent the Belarusian culture at the international level in various formats has contributed to the fact that there has been a tradition of holding street concerts of classical music in Minsk for more than five years. Since 2015, over 250 thousand Belarusians have watched 37 free concerts, many of which were dedicated to the work of domestic composers. In 2019, the project reached the national level and musical evenings were also held in Vitebsk, Grodno, Gomel and Brest.
Future
A joint initiative of A1, Urban Myths street art activists and the Frunzensky District Administration has united street artists from Belarus, Serbia and Spain. Vivid images inspired by their impressions of the modern Minsk and its inhabitants, as well as the rich history and culture of our country have become the subjects for three murals on the facades of 12-storey buildings in the Kuntsevshchina microdistrict (at 134, 136 and 150 Pritytskogo Street). The combination of tradition and technology as the foundation for movement towards future has become the main theme for each of the artists.
Charity
Every A1 subscriber has the opportunity to support Belarusian charitable organizations by donating a certain amount in any way convenient: using the "Kindness" section in the A1 banking application, via a USSD request or by sending an SMS to a short number. Help can be directed to Belarusian doctors fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, large Republican charitable foundations, as well as regional associations.
Ecology
Solar energy for Green schools
A1 held a "Solar energy for Green schools" competition in partnership with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus, the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Belarus and the United Nations Development Program in Belarus in summer of 2020. The company will install solar panels in seven educational institutions - one in each region and one in Minsk - so that children can see for themselves how solar energy works and what benefits renewable energy sources can bring.
Get in touch with nature
A1 has implemented a "Get in touch with nature" ecological project in cooperation with the Homeland Bird Protection (HBP) Public organization. Belarus became the first country in the world where 10 birds received personal phone numbers. These are the most common and most recognizable birds in Belarus, which can be seen in parks and sometimes even from an apartment window. Many have heard these voices before, not knowing who they belong to. Calls on all 10 numbers are free for A1 subscribers, except for those in roaming.
Inclusive projects
Inclusive Barista
In November 2020, the A1 digital services center opened the Inclusive Barista coffee bar. This is the first place in Minsk where a barrier-free environment has been created not only for visitors, but also for employees. The coffee bar integrated in the shopping facility ecosystem is equipped with a transforming counter so that disabled baristas are able to adapt to the workplace. Other features of the coffee bar include the Braille script on cups, as well as the menu projected onto the wall instead of the traditional one.
Support of the Family Inclusive Theater “i”
Since the foundation of the Family Inclusive Theater “i” in 2016, A1 supports its activities and the company is its general partner. This cooperation resulted in numerous premiers, thematic forums and events dedicated to the World Autism Awareness Day. All this helps not only unlock the creative potential of children with autism, but also change the attitude of Belarusians to the issues of inclusion at the national level.
Media literacy
#ionline
A1 has initiated #ionline volunteer movement. All active users of mobile technologies willing to share their knowledge with others can become volunteers. The volunteers' task is to explain what the mobile Internet can be useful for and help those who find it difficult to use modern communication technologies.