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Material matters

We review and update our GRI-aligned materiality analysis annually, which is driven and informed by Gold Fields’ purpose and our commitment to best practices in sustainability, reporting standards and frameworks. Material matters are those issues that could substantially impact Gold Fields' outward influence on society, our host communities and the environment (including human rights), as well as our ability to deliver on the Group's three strategic pillars and create value for our stakeholders over the short, medium and long term.

In 2023, we initiated a new three-year analysis cycle and conducted a review to identify the Group's material matters. This year, we reviewed our existing material matters to ensure their continued relevance to Gold Fields and our stakeholders. We analysed both our internal and external operating context and confirmed that our 29 material matters, aggregated into seven material themes, remain topical. The results of the analysis further serve to inform Gold Fields’ business plans and strategies, as well as our approach to external reporting, and we continue reporting on material issues in our annual reporting suite.

Gold Fields' 2024 material themes and material matters
Protecting the health, safety and wellbeing of our employees and contractors	Physical safety Health and wellbeing	Psychological safety
Creating Shared Value for host communities	Community engagement and relations Host community employment and procurement	SED
Managing our People	Diversity, equity and inclusion Attract, retain and enhance talent and skills	Remuneration and reward Labour practices and relations
Respecting the rights of our stakeholders	Culture and heritage Indigenous Peoples	Human rights
Committing to sound environmental practices	Nature and biodiversity management Tailings management Climate risk	Water stewardship Energy and carbon management
Ensuring business resilience	Social and political risks Materials stewardship and supply chain Delivering on our strategy and creating financial value for shareholders	Integrated mine closure planning Modernisation, innovation and technology Cybersecurity
Upholding sound corporate governance principles	Leadership and succession planning Board structure and composition Legal and regulatory compliance	Executive remuneration Ethics, transparency and integrity

Our material matters are grouped into themes that reflect the focus areas of our business. While our material matters did not change from 2023, we noted the following:

• While business partner management has always been important to our Company, it emerged as a critical focus area following our 2024 independent safety diagnostic – particularly how to integrate our business partners' operations with our values and standards
• There is a stronger focus on talent retention and ensuring we have the right individuals and capabilities to meet future needs
• Because our language shapes our culture, “Managing our human capital” was renamed “Managing our People”
• Creating Shared Value for our host communities remain a significant area of interest for our stakeholders and focus area for Gold Fields

Materiality assessments are dynamic, and we will continue to monitor our external and internal environment to ensure we consider and respond to the material matters that are most important to our business.

Our material themes