Novartis highlights progress towards access and environmental goals in 2016 Corporate Responsibility Performance Report

• Novartis Access-to-medicine programs reached approximately 52 million patients, including first-year deliveries through the innovative Novartis Access program
   
• Novartis improved position in key sustainability rankings, including recent Corporate Knights' "Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World"
   
• 2016 report highlights work towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and shares trends and challenges within the healthcare industry

Basel, January 26, 2017 - Novartis published its Corporate Responsibility (CR) Performance Report for the fourth consecutive year, highlighting progress on access and environmental goals in 2016. Building on the company's long history of corporate responsibility and transparent reporting, the 2016 report provides even more context on the company's CR performance across five key areas: Access, Ethics, Research & Development, People and Environment.  The report also captures perspectives from external stakeholders on trends and challenges within the healthcare industry and presents the essential contributions Novartis makes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

"I'm proud of the progress we've made in aligning our corporate responsibility and sustainability goals with our business strategy" said Joseph Jimenez, CEO of Novartis. "Looking to the future, I am eager to work with our teams to continue embedding corporate responsibility into our ongoing business and every facet of our work."

Novartis provided medicine to approximately 52 million patients through access programs in 2016, as well as health education, infrastructure development and other programs to another 17 million people worldwide.  One year since launch, Novartis Access delivered more than 120,000 treatments for chronic diseases to Kenya, Lebanon and Ethiopia, each providing a one-month supply of medicine.  The Novartis Access 2016 one-year report, also released today, captures updates on progress and key learnings.

The Novartis Malaria Initiative achieved another milestone in 2016, with more than 800 million treatments delivered without profit to malaria-endemic countries since 2001.  At the same time, Novartis launched SMS for Life 2.0 in Kaduna State, Nigeria. The program is an enhanced version of the award-winning SMS for Life program and uses smartphones and tablet computers to enable local healthcare workers to manage stock levels of treatments and receive training.  The next-generation antimalarial, KAF156, is also entering Phase IIb clinical development.

Novartis also took steps toward achieving its Vision 2030 on Environmental Sustainability and 2020 targets. Overall net greenhouse gas emissions reduced by 18.7% versus 2010, with an additional net reduction of 10,000 tons through energy projects in 2016.  Development has also begun on an approach to capture, measure and value the external economic, environmental and social impacts created by the company's activities.

"Corporate responsibility is a core part of our business strategy," said Juergen Brokatzky-Geiger, Global Head of Corporate Responsibility. "It drives our ability to successfully pioneer new business approaches, create scalable solutions to global healthcare challenges, and partner with organizations that share our mission of improving and extending people's lives."

Testimony to the progress made, Novartis improved its standing in several key sustainability rankings. In the 2016 Access to Medicine Index, Novartis ranked third, up from fourth in 2014 and seventh in 2012.  Novartis also received an A- rating and recognition among category leaders in healthcare in the 2016 CDP Climate Score.  Most recently, in Corporate Knights' 2017 Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World ranking, the company significantly improved its standing, moving up 30 ranks from last year to 68th.  Novartis was also recognized in Newsweek's Green Rankings and the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, as well as in Fortune's 2016 "World's Most Admired Companies" list.

In 2016, the CR Performance report is again structured in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative's (GRI) G4 guidelines, with disclosure at "comprehensive" level.  Novartis has a strong history of CR activities, and transparent reporting is a central part of its commitment to corporate responsibility. Novartis has publicly reported on performance in this area since 2000 through its Annual Report and several online and printed materials.

Download the Novartis Corporate Responsibility Performance Report 2016  
Download the Novartis Access 2016 one-year report
Download the Corporate Responsibility section of the Novartis Annual Report 2016

Find out more about our corporate responsibility activities online at:
http://www.novartis.com/corporate-responsibility/index.shtml.

Disclaimer
This press release contains expressed or implied forward-looking statements, including statements that can be identified by terminology such as "progress," "building," "goals," "strategy," "looking to the future," "eager," "continue," "launch," "launched," "next-generation," "targets," "development has also begun," "approach," "mission," "commitment," or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements reflect the current views of the Group regarding future events, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from any future results expressed or implied by such statements. These expectations could be affected by, among other things, risks and factors referred to in the Risk Factors section of Novartis AG's current Form 20-F on file with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Novartis is providing the information in this press release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update it in the future.

About Novartis
Novartis provides innovative healthcare solutions that address the evolving needs of patients and societies. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs: innovative medicines, eye care and cost-saving generic pharmaceuticals. Novartis is the only global company with leading positions in these areas. In 2016, the Group achieved net sales of USD 48.5 billion, while R&D throughout the Group amounted to approximately USD 9.0 billion (USD 8.4 billion excluding impairment and amortization charges). Novartis Group companies employ approximately 118,000 full-time-equivalent associates. Novartis products are sold in approximately 155 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.novartis.com.

Novartis is on Twitter. Sign up to follow @Novartis at http://twitter.com/novartis
For Novartis multimedia content, please visit www.novartis.com/news/media-library
For questions about the site or required registration, please contact [email protected]

# # #

Novartis Media Relations
Central media line: +41 61 324 2200
E-mail: [email protected]

Novartis Investor Relations
Central investor relations line: +41 61 324 7944
E-mail: [email protected]