Common values

The First, Second, Third and Fourth AP Funds (the AP Funds) have been commissioned by the Swedish Parliament to manage assets to the greatest possible benefit of the income pension system.

Assets must be managed in an exemplary way. The AP Funds have common core values, which provide guidance for the operations. The core values are based on the Swedish state’s values. The common value foundation can be found on the AP Funds’ respective websites.

The AP Funds Council on Ethic’s work on sustainability and corporate governance is conducted with the aim of creating and protecting values for current and future Swedish pensioners. The Council on Ethics makes a difference by proactively promoting sustainable development, acting and making demands for transparency and positive change. This contributes to the AP Funds’ ability to fulfill their mission.

The AP Funds have common core values, which provide guidance for the operations. The core values are based on the Swedish state’s values.

The work of the AP Funds Council on Ethics on the basis of the common values

The work of the AP Funds Council on Ethics is based on a common value foundation for sustainability and uses dialogues as the main tool in the sustainability work. The work of the Ethics Council is to act and place demands on positive changes within sustainability of foreign companies, separate or as an industry. The AP Funds are small owners in foreign companies, and the Council on Ethics is therefore focusing its work on the dialogues and projects that are judged to make the most positive difference. The goal is for the companies to work systematically, structured and transparent with sustainability.

The Council on Ethics engages in industries and foreign companies where:

• serious and systematic problems in the industry were identified
• violations of international conventions have been identified, assessed as tangible and well documented.
• the circumstances surrounding a company are so serious and systematic that a dialogue is justified.

The goal of the AP Funds Council of Ethics is to help companies work systematically and structured with sustainability. This means that companies, based on the activities they carry out, must deal with relevant sustainability aspects by having appropriate guidelines and routines as well as control and follow-up systems. This enables companies to ensure that the business is carried out responsibly regardless of where in the world the company operates. Companies should be transparent in their information provision and communicate how they relate to the sustainability aspects that are relevant to the business and work for a healthy interaction with society in general.

The goal of the AP Funds Council of Ethics is to help companies work systematically and structured with sustainability.

The AP Funds consider that the companies in which the AP Funds invest themselves have a responsibility not to contribute to breach of international conventions, whether directed to states, to individuals or to companies and organizations. The responsibility also applies if the countries where the companies operate have not signed the conventions or have weaker legislation.

The number of areas that the Council on Ethics can get involved in is large and constantly growing. Sustainability work is either about making improvements to industry-wide problems or following up serious incidents in individual companies. Engaging in all areas and in all companies is neither possible nor effective and therefore priorities must be made. The value base provides guidance when balancing and prioritizing needs to be made between which company dialogues and/or proactive projects the AP Funds Council on Ethics should work with.