TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Japan Tobacco Inc. (JT) (TSE: 2914) announces today that it has been included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Asia Pacific Index (“DJSI Asia Pacific”), for the ninth consecutive year, reflecting the company’s continued approach to addressing social and environmental issues across its value chain.

The DJSI is a globally recognized environmental, social and governance (ESG) stock index1 and sustainability benchmark that tracks the stock performance of the world's leading companies in terms of governance and economic, environmental and social dimensions, with constituents selected on the basis of the S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA)2. The DJSI Asia Pacific is an index of companies in the Asia-Pacific region, which is reviewed once a year and whose constituents are selected from approximately 600 major companies in the region.

The DJSI applies a comprehensive approach which incorporates the latest trends and discussions across the ESG spectrum. The participation in international and credible ESG assessments enables the JT Group to objectively evaluate its own sustainability measures and disclosure materials.

Hisato Imokawa, Senior Vice President, Chief Sustainability Officer, said: “We are honored that this year again, JT has been selected in the DJSI Asia Pacific. We believe that our inclusion in the index for the ninth consecutive year is the recognition of our earnest efforts to address ESG issues across our value chain. We are committed to promoting transparent and accurate disclosure of non-financial information, which has been a vital part of our agenda in recent years, and we recognize that this is an important initiative to promote stakeholder engagement and dialogue.

Out of 24 total criteria, the JT Group scored 81/100 in the 2022 S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment, achieving full marks relating to the Materiality, Environmental Reporting, Operational Eco-Efficiency, Social Reporting, and Corporate Citizenship and Philanthropy criteria (based on the score data as of December 10, 2022).

1 ESG stock index reflects an organization’s measures in terms of social, environmental and governance performance in addition to its financial performance.

2 CSA is an assessment conducted by S&P Global. Companies are categorized by industry and sent questionnaires that focus on the most important and relevant ESG factors in each industry to evaluate their ESG approaches in terms of both transparency and performance.

The JT Group's sustainability strategy is formulated on the basis of its 4S model3, and encompasses materiality analyses. The foundation of the Group’s sustainability strategy is based on “three absolute requirements for sustainability”:

• Respecting human rights;
• An improved social and environmental impact; and
• Good governance and business standards.

The JT Group supports the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their related targets in the context of the company’s business and operational environments4. In order to achieve sustainable growth, it is essential for the Group to contribute to the sustainable development of society through its business activities. The JT Group will continue to engage with its stakeholders and make concerted efforts to ensure that both society and the Group can grow together to secure a sustainable future.

3 JT Group’s management principle is to pursue the 4S model. Under the 4S model, the Group strives to fulfill its responsibilities to its valued consumers, shareholders, employees and the wider society, carefully considering the respective interests of these four key stakeholder groups and exceeding their expectations wherever the Group can. For more details, please visit https://www.jt.com/about/management_principles/index.htm

4 Please refer to https://www.jt.com/sustainability/strategy/materiality_strategy_sdgs/index.html for more details about the JT Group’s commitment to SDGs and the specific ways in which we can contribute to achieving some of the goals.

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Japan Tobacco Inc. is a leading international tobacco company with operations in more than 130 countries and regions. With approximately 55,000 employees, it manufactures and sells some of the world’s best-known brands including Winston, Camel, MEVIUS and LD. The JT Group is committed to investing in Reduced-Risk Products (RRP) and currently markets its heated tobacco products under its Ploom brand and various e-cigarette products under its Logic brand. The Group is also present in the pharmaceutical and processed food businesses. For more information, visit https://www.jt.com/.