According to the 2023 Synthesis of Social Indicators¹, published by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE for its initials in Portuguese), Brazil has around 67.8 million people living in poverty.

Suzano understands that it has an important role to play not only in supporting economic development but also in promoting social transformation in the more than 200 municipalities in which it operates. That's why, along with civil society organizations and other actors in these locations, we create income generation programs and seek to influence public processes and policies, strengthening sustainable local businesses that are part of the culture of each region.

We used the global reference of monetary poverty adopted by the World Bank and ratified by the IBGE, of 5.50 dollars a day or 486 reais per month of family income per capita (2022)2. The calculation uses the average monthly income, understood as the total income of the residents of the household, from work and other sources of income generation, divided by the number of residents.

The commitment focuses on broadening the scope of our income generation programs to lift people out of poverty, taking into account the levels of socio-economic vulnerability in each region.

Suzano's social investment is a strategic instrument for generating value, both for the business and for neighboring communities and the regions where the company operates, guaranteeing involvement with stakeholders.

The focus is on solutions with a direct impact on poverty reduction, guided by its multidimensionality — which affects the spheres of income, health and education — and which can be replicated and expanded in different municipalities. The projects fall within six programmatic lines that cover regional characteristics and their socio-economic vocations:

• Sustainable extractivism.
• Inclusive recycling.
• Entrepreneurship.
• Territorial supply networks. 
• Access to employment. 
• Suzano Value Chain.

In 2023, we lifted 22,250 people out of poverty in areas of operation in Brazil, which represents an increase of 21.3% compared to 2022, totaling 51,883 people lifted out of poverty since 2020.

Throughout the year, we invested R$22.1 million in 73 projects supported by civil society organizations, benefiting more than 92,000 people in over 120 municipalities in 8 Brazilian states. Notably, significant partnerships were forged, securing over 40 million reais for co-investment in income generation projects through 2025. New collaborators include Sofidel, the Partners for the Amazon Platform (PAP), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Coca-Cola Institute, the Brazilian Micro and Small Business Support Service (Sebrae), São Paulo, and the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES). We also expanded productive inclusion and market access for products and services in local and regional markets (urban and rural). Furthermore, advancements were made in Employability Projects in São Paulo, Maranhão and Mato Grosso do Sul, which enabled 4,593 people to be lifted out of poverty through improved employment through regional service providers.

It is important to note that, as recently as 2022, the Theory of Change (ToC) was built to materialize the impact results of the commitment to reduce poverty. The method makes visible the path needed to achieve real social transformation in the short, medium and long term, which has helped us to evolve towards our goal.

We will continue to invest in projects that take into account regional characteristics and socio-economic vocations in the different areas of application of the Commitment. We believe in the potential of our partnerships and, in 2024, we will seek new connections to expand the scale and scope of our actions, further expanding the company's impact on this agenda.

In this sense, the results for 2024 should be boosted by the projects and partnerships already established in 2023, with the conclusion of most of the projects in our portfolio. Of particular note are the expectations for projects involving the S System in several states, collaboration with the Coca-Cola Institute and initiatives with the Central Única das Favelas (Cufa) and the Instituto das Pretas in Espírito Santo and Bahia. The creation of the Ribas do Rio Pardo Unit (MS) should also generate a new wave of jobs, with a special focus on people in vulnerable situations.