Precious metals miners Sibanye-Stillwater, Harmony Gold and Gold Fields are among the mining firms recognised in this year's Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index (GEI).

Gold miner Harmony has been included in the index for the fifth consecutive year.

“Harmony’s inclusion in the Bloomberg GEI reflects our culture of gender equality, inclusivity and diversity. It also highlights our commitment to addressing this important social component of our business through transparent reporting and disclosure of our social data.

"In line with our commitment to ‘Mining with Purpose’, Harmony will continue to provide an inclusive work environment, which fosters gender diversity, and treats and rewards all our employees fairly and with respect,” says CEO Peter Steenkamp.

Gold, platinum-group metals and battery metals miner Sibanye, meanwhile, notes that it is one of 484 companies globally and one of only eight South African companies to be included in this year's index.

“Our commitment aims to support a future where gender inequality ceases to exist, supported by a culture where high performance, opportunities and contribution are valued without bias.

"Our commitment is further endorsed by targets and via a specific stated strategic differentiator of being ‘inclusive, diverse and bionic',” says CEO Neal Froneman.

Gold miner Gold Fields says its inclusion in the index is one of a number of recent achievements by Gold Fields, which has entrenched its commitment to sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices as one of the key pillars of its strategy.

“We need to manage ESG issues in full alignment with our business strategy and to fulfil our purpose of creating enduring value beyond mining. Our stakeholders are not only expecting that we pay great attention to ESG issues, but also that we disclose the impact of these issues. 

“A critical part of this commitment is transparent reporting and benchmarking ourselves against our peers through internationally recognised frameworks and indices,” says Gold Fields interim CEO Martin Preece.