2022 was a challenging year, spent in the full throws of recovery from the Covid-19 health crisis and in the knowledge that we are operating, now and in the near future, in an increasingly changing and unpredictable environment.

The Russian-Ukrainian conflict, and the resulting humanitarian and energy supply crisis, has strained the resilience of our economy and community.
This dramatic event, significantly altering the geopolitical balance at global level, which marked the first months of last year and whose effects, however, persist, draws attention to the need for companies to orient their business strategies towards a path of transition to a more sustainable economy, which places the central focus on the needs of the communities and territories in which they operate.

Moreover, the continuation of the pandemic for the third consecutive year, although presenting an opportunity for change and accelerating crucial processes for the country's development such as the digital transition, risks, however, aggravating, in a broader context, inequalities by eroding social cohesion and increasing the social gap.
In fact, this risk, according to the World Economic Forum's 2023 Global Risk Report, ranks seventh - globally - among the most burdensome risks of the next ten years, along with climate change, biodiversity loss, large-scale involuntary migration and the depletion of available natural resources.
 
In order to face the many challenges arising from the current context, we are convinced of the effectiveness of our sustainable business model in the medium to long term, with a solid strategy based on measurable objectives that take into account the demands of all stakeholders, part of the commitment to maintaining ongoing dialogue.

Aspects of innovation and sustainability have been at the core of all Group strategies since 2020, but in 2022 they were further strengthened and integrated into the challenging goals contained in the Strategic Plan.

Thanks to numerous initiatives and projects in line with an integrated vision, we can say that the Group is solid and sustainable, capable of providing the most innovative answers to seize the best opportunities even in a highly challenging and changing environment.
 
Poste Italiane aims to support the sustainable development of the country and to be a guide for responsible growth and digital evolution through the definition and achievement of financial, operational and sustainability objectives - understood in its broadest sense.
With regard to environmental sustainability, in recent years we have seen a growing importance of these issues both at a global level, with the great resonance of COP 26 and the historic success of the establishment of the Loss & Damage fund during COP 27, and at a European level, with the publications on Environmental Taxonomy.

At the national level, on the other hand, the substantial allocations in the PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan) for the country's green transition confirm the need to implement processes increasingly focused on circular economy, sustainable mobility, energy efficiency of buildings and pollution monitoring, in order to improve the sustainability of the economic system to achieve a zero environmental impact society.
In this regard, in order to meet the demands of institutions and our stakeholders, we have continued to pursue numerous activities to combat climate change.

The ambitious commitments made by Poste Italiane are aimed at achieving carbon neutrality by 2030, well ahead of the time-line set by the European Union, and at the same time reflect the innovative green philosophy adopted by the Group that pervades all our services, processes and products.
The holistic approach is also reflected in a greater involvement of customers through a carbon offsetting programme, the "Green Challenge", which rewards their "green behaviour", i.e. all those virtuous aspects of behaviour that benefit the environment.
 
From a social point of view, in 2022 Poste Italiane once again demonstrated that it is close to people and territories by making a significant contribution to the country.

In fact, the Group, continuing with the approach adopted in 2021, made its channels available to the public for booking requests for the fourth dose of the Covid vaccine, giving them the opportunity to book in different ways. Moreover, Poste Italiane's commitment to accompanying the country's recovery is further demonstrated by the Polis Project, a social inclusion programme aimed at countering the depopulation of small towns and contributing to their socio-economic development by fostering interaction with the local areas and synergies with local institutions.