Bezeq Israel Telecommunication : Group publishes its ESG report for 2022

September 21, 2023

PRESS RELEASE

Bezeq Group publishes its ESG report for 2022:

Bridging the digital divide, recycling 100 tons of electronic waste, advancing diversity, inclusion, and gender equality, and blocking more than 2.5 million DDOS attacks every day

The Bezeq Group presented its ESG report for 2022, with a series of achievements, challenges, and goals in areas relevantto the activities of the Group companies: Bezeq, Pelephone, yes, and Bezeq International TECH, with emphasis on connecting Israel in terms of infrastructure and social programs.

Striving for equality, bridging divides, and connecting the periphery

Bezeq believes that everyone is entitled to equal access to digital technology and knowledge. By the end of 2022, Bezeq had deployed fiber optic infrastructure to more than 1.5 million households - positioning it as one of the companies with the quickest deployment rate in the world. In the first year of the project, the Company focused on high-density urban areas. In 2022, there has already been significant progress in deployment in neighborhoods with single and double-story homes and in outlying areas. Pelephone was the first to launch 5G in Israel, and it continues to lead the market with over 920 thousand subscribers.

The connection to fiber and 5G is in full alignment with the Group's vision to connect the community in Israel to the future, to bridge the digital divide, and to strengthen the social fabric of disadvantaged populations. Accordingly, Bezeq maintains strategic and long-term collaborations with social entities and initiatives.

Bezeq is involved in a wide range of community projects, which includes the donation of advanced telecommunication services. In 2022, we contributed services to 343 associations at a value of more than NIS 3 million, participated in the "A Computer for Every Child" project, adopted the Herzog school in Holon, which includes the establishment of a smart telecommunication system at the school, mentoring of young boys and girls by Bezeq employees, and giving lessons to students on a voluntary basis.

Bezeq is a partner in Appleseeds NPO for digital equality in Israel. In 2022, Bezeq and Appleseeds opened a new community technology center in Bat Yam. To date, 20 centers equipped with computer classrooms and Bezeq infrastructure have opened, from Eilat to Kiryat Shmona, which Appleseeds uses for courses, training, and other activities. As part of the collaboration with Appleseeds, for the third year, Bezeq awarded five scholarships in memory of Kobi Paz, the Company's VP who passed away in February 2020. The scholarships were awarded to participants in Appleseeds' bootcamp training program, which aims to open up opportunities for advanced technological employment for people from all sectors of Israeli society. A joint training program was also launched and 11 Appleseeds graduates were hired at Bezeq.

Bezeq's subsidiaries, Pelephone, yes, and Bezeq International TECH, supported a wide range of impressive projects for the benefit of the community, including the donation of SIM cards and free call minutes to Ukrainian refugees, setting up a fundraising call center for Holocaust survivors, the "Big Brother -Big Sister" project for children who are victims of violence, boycott, bullying, and loneliness, donation of computer rooms together with the Israel Association of Community Centers, and donation of airtime and television subscriptions.

Advancing diversity, inclusion, and gender equality, in the Group companies and on the screen

In 2022, the Bezeq Group worked extensively to increase occupational diversity in the Company and started to prepare a strategic plan to meet the ESG goal of increasing the representation of employees from diverse populations to 20%. The Group companies are members of the Global Valuable 500 Forum for people with disabilities.Employees from diverse populations at Bezeq jumped to 15% of all Bezeq and Bezeq International TECH employees and 10% of all yes employees.

Women hold 39% of management positions in the Bezeq Group. To meet the ESG goal of full gender equality in management levels by 2030 in all Group companies, Bezeq joined the UN Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPS) initiative.

At Bezeq, a diversity, inclusion, and gender equality officer was appointed; a dedicated forum was set up for the issue, headed by the VP of Human Resources; and a steering committee made up of managers from all Company divisions was set up to define and implement the strategic plan. At the beginning of the year, Bezeq received the approval of the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission for its diversity and inclusion program.

The commitment to advancing diversity, inclusion, and gender equality is also projected to the public and is reflected in female representation in the original productions of yes, on screen and behind the scenes, and true-to-life characters from diverse backgrounds. In 88% of children and youth productions, the main character is female. In 50% of original drama productions, the main characters are female.

Protecting the environmental: much more recycling, substantial reduction in the use of packaging materials

In 2022, the Group built a plan for net zero carbon emissions by 2050, according to the ESG target it set for itself (based on annual science-based targets). In 2023, the subsidiaries also adopted these goals. The targets that the Group achieved include a 4.9% decrease in the carbon footprint; 9 million kWh in energy savings; establishment of engineering sites shared by Pelephone and other companies, representing 38% of all the Company's sites; 50% decrease in the use of packaging materials for yes streamers; 35% increase in the proportion of hybrid and electric vehicles at Bezeq within two years, representing 50% of the fleet; and joining the CDP carbon emissions disclosure system.

At theBezeq-tech plant, 95.5 tons of electronic waste was recycled - an increase of 102% compared with 2020.

At Bezeq, an energy efficiency forum was set up to achieve the goals, headed by the VP of Logistics and Operations and managers from the relevant divisions.

Protection for 70 million devices and blocking more than 2.5 million DDOS attacks every day

The popular commercial for Protected Fiber starring Ness & Stilla with Gidi Gov highlights protection for Bezeq's fiber network by Be routers, which are activated automatically without any customer involvement.The protection provided by Be routers in 2022 includes protection of 70 million devices in home networks of the Company's customers, blocking more than 2.5 million DDOS attacks every day and preventing 3 million phishing attacks every day.

Pelephone provides free cyber protection to all its customers to block cyber-attacks in mobile browsing, manage the security level for mobile browsing, and provide alerts and tips for safe browsing.

The subsidiary Bezeq International TECH also provides organizations with a comprehensive, fast, and advanced response to cyber-attacks.

Link to the full report: https://ir.bezeq.co.il/esg-reports

About "Bezeq" The Israel Telecommunication Corp.

Bezeq, Israel's leading telecommunications service provider, was established in 1984. The Company has led Israel into the new era of communications by focusing on the most advanced technologies and services. Bezeq and its subsidiaries offer the full range of telecommunications services including domestic, international and cellular phone services, broadband Internet and other data communications, cloud and digital services, satellite and Internet based multi-channel TV and corporate networks. For more information about Bezeq please visit the corporate website at www.ir.bezeq.co.il.

Naftali Sternlicht Guy Hadass

Bezeq Bezeq

Phone: +972-2-539-5441                                               Phone: +972-3-626-2600

Email: ir@bezeq.co.il                                                     Email: pr@bezeq.co.il