Robeco's exclusion policy
Robeco enters into an active dialogue with the companies in which it invests about their approach to social responsibility. If this dialogue does not lead to the desired result, Robeco may decide to apply its exclusion policy. Excluded companies are no longer included in the investment portfolios and we advise clients to stop investing in them.
Violations
Companies may be guilty of serious systematic violations of international guidelines on responsible investing, such as the United Nations Global Compact. In a dialogue, Robeco will try to persuade such companies to cease these violations. This is in the interest of the companies themselves and of other stakeholders like clients, suppliers, local communities and shareholders.
If dialogue is not an option ...
Sometimes there is little chance that dialogue with a company will achieve the desired results. This is the case, for instance, if a company manufactures a certain type of controversial product. In many cases, attempts to stop production would jeopardize corporate strategy, or force the company to abandon core activities. We do not consider dialogue a useful option in such cases, and so Robeco excludes investments in such companies.
Robeco policy
Robeco’s policy targets companies that produce or trade in controversial weapons. These are weapons that are the subject of widely accepted international treaties (cluster munitions, anti-personnel mines, and biological and chemical weapons). The treaties that prohibit the production of, and trade in, such weapons have been signed by many countries, including the Netherlands.
Which categories?
Robeco does not invest in equities, corporate bonds or related derivatives of companies that produce or trade in such weapons, or strategic parts thereof. We make use of research carried out by external parties in this area in addition to data provided by the companies themselves.
Finally, Robeco also excludes investment in the government bonds of certain countries. These are countries targeted by the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.
