In 2025, the region experienced significant transformations that exposed various risks, requiring governments, businesses, and society to adapt rapidly and systematically. Geopolitical tensions and climate change emerged as two of the most material challenges, increasingly demanding coordinated public and private sector action.
The MENA region is among the most climate-vulnerable in the world, facing acute climate insecurity driven by extreme heat, chronic water scarcity, desertification, and increasing climate-related disruptions to infrastructure and essential services. These physical risks are exacerbated by transition risks linked to evolving climate policies, energy system shifts, and rising investor and regulatory expectations. Together, these dynamics heighten economic volatility, strain public resources, and complicate long-term investment and planning across the region.
Heightened uncertainty has further constrained businesses’ ability to make accurate forecasts and plan long-term investments. At the same time, the region has an opportunity to strengthen resilience by better leveraging its human capital through skills development, innovation, and more agile workforce models.
However, structural labor market challenges persist. A large share of the workforce remains under-skilled, requiring significant upskilling and reskilling to meet the demands of the digital economy. Only 14.5 percent of firms in the MENA region invest in employee training, less than half the average of middle-income economies. These constraints are also highlighted by the lowest female labor force participation of 18 percent, despite evidence that increasing women’s participation could raise income per capita by up to 50 percent. The inability to fully mobilize and develop human capital limits the region’s capacity to respond to economic and climate-related shocks.
As such, Zain plays a unique role in addressing regional challenges through its products and services, supported by an agile, market-specific approach. Climate action is embedded within Zain’s Corporate Sustainability strategy and long-term value creation agenda.
Zain’s net-zero ambition is aligned with the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), with targets validated under the SBTi Net-Zero Framework, which requires achieving net zero by 2050. Greenhouse gas emissions are calculated in line with the GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard, with emission factors aligned to International Energy Agency standards. While Nationally Determined Contributions across Zain’s markets extend to 2050, 2060, or beyond, alignment with the SBTi framework ensures a consistent, science-based approach across all operations.
This year marks the conclusion of Zain’s 2020–2025 Corporate Sustainability strategy, reflecting progress made in formalizing the management of social, economic, and environmental impacts and advancing the company’s mission of providing meaningful connectivity that supports resilience and systemic change.
All topics and material mentioned in this section can be found in greater detail in Zain’s 2025 Sustainability Report.
The following section highlights yearly progress of Zain’s CS Strategy across Zain’s operations:
In 2025, Zain took a strategic step related to the collection of sustainability data by automating more than 200 ESG indicators through its data management platform, elevating the accuracy, consistency, and accessibility of sustainability performance across the Group. The company also published its Climate Transition Plan and embedded integrated-thinking principles into its sustainability reporting, laying the groundwork for the next strategic cycle.
Building on the mission of providing Meaningful Connectivity and its vision of driving equitable, systemic change, Zain is redefining its sustainability strategy to reflect key lessons learned, evolving market contexts, and emerging challenges and gaps across its operations, as sustainability is central to the new 4WARD–Progress with Purpose corporate strategy. In parallel, integrated thinking principles are embedded across Zain’s Sustainability Report to further ensure a holistic assessment of value creation and take into consideration trade-offs of business decisions made.
Key Achievements of the Year:
Integrated a centralized ESG data-management platform, automating the collection of 200+ indicators across operations
Embedded integrated-thinking principles into the Sustainability Report to reflect holistic, cross-functional decision-making
Published Zain’s Climate Transition Plan, outlining the company’s pathway to Net Zero
Launched a Group-wide waste data collection initiative across all operations, establishing the foundation for a comprehensive waste baseline
Mission
To provide Meaningful Connectivity leading to equitable systemic change and empower Zain’s communities.
Vision
Safeguard the planet
Address societal challenges through the core business
Enable an inclusive digital society
Build the youth of the future
Strategic Pillars
Climate Change
Decarbonize our business & transition towards net-zero by 2050
Operating Responsibly
Embed ESG across our value chain
Inclusion
Reduce the digital inequality gap
Generation Youth
Build resilience across our communities by targeting 16 million children and youth
