Friendship Code of Ethics

HUMAN RESOURCES & ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Friendship Code of Ethics Policy

_____________________________________________________________________________________
Date/Month Issued: Aug 2022
Version: 4.0
© No part of this document may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form without the express written
permission of Friendship

Name of the employee and ID:

Signature and Date
 Friendship Code of Ethics

Table of Contents
1. Introduction.................................................................................................................................... 3
2. Scope ............................................................................................................................................. 3
3. Code of Ethics............................................................................................................................... 3
4. Policy Elements ............................................................................................................................ 4
4.1 The Components of our Code of Professional Ethics..................................................... 5

_____________________________________________________________________________________
Date/Month Issued: Aug 2022
Version: 4.0
© No part of this document may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form without the express written
permission of Friendship

Name of the employee and ID:

Signature and Date
 Friendship Code of Ethics

1. Introduction
Friendship is an international Social Purpose Organisation* guided by its vision of a world
where people—especially the hard to reach and unaddressed—have equal opportunities to
live with dignity and hope.
From Bangladesh, a country facing the most pressing of humanity’s challenges, we develop
scalable solutions to strengthen marginalised communities, and empower people to transform
their lives and reach their full potential.
Founded 20 years ago, Friendship reaches 7 million people in remote and climate-impacted
communities with innovative solutions fulfilling four commitments: Saving Lives, Poverty
Alleviation, Climate Adaptation and Empowerment.
As challenges faced by communities are multi-faceted and interlinked, Friendship’s integrated
development model combines services in health, education, climate action, inclusive
citizenship, sustainable economic development and cultural preservation.

2. Scope

This policy applies to everyone we employ or have organizational relations with. This includes
individual people such as Employed staff/Volunteers & interns/Board members/Program
Participants (eg trainers, group leaders, facilitators) and consultants/Collaborating community
groups/Donors and funding bodies/Sub-contracted consultants for program input, activities or
other, but also organizational entities, such as vendors, donors etc. Note that our code of
ethics is slightly different than our code of conduct. Code of conduct may include elements
such as dress code and social media use, whilst our code of professional ethics refers to
legally or morally charged issues. Still, these two codes do overlap.

3. Code of Ethics

Friendship developed Code of Ethics Policy complements Friendship Code of Conduct Policy.
Our professional code of ethics policy aims to give our employees guidelines on our
organizational values/ethics. We trust you to use your better judgment, but we want to provide
you with a concrete guide you can fall back on if you’re unsure about how you should act (e.g.
in cases of conflict of interest). We will also use this policy to outline the consequences of
violating our organizational code of ethics.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Date/Month Issued: Aug 2022
Version: 4.0
© No part of this document may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form without the express written
permission of Friendship

Name of the employee and ID:

Signature and Date
 Friendship Code of Ethics

Friendship recognizes that we, as responsible citizens, are probably not giving due
acknowledgement and importance to the significance of teaching, demonstrating and
nurturing the fundamental values of Ethics and Dignity which enhance the value of humanity
among us. Every day we face the horrors of the world on the news and the social media that
lack benevolence and compassion. Friendship believes that Dignity and Value need the proper
recognition and systematic practice in daily life. There would not be a world to care for without
the people built of strong character.

With the plan of building a better world with better people, Runa Khan, the Founder and
Executive Director of Friendship, introduced the Code of Ethics consisting of consisting of 12
values to be nurtured throughout the 12 months of the year. One Value is selected every
month and learning tools are developed by Friendship team which is circulated to all
Friendship schools, staff (Head office and Field Offices), different community groups, schools

in Luxembourg, Pakistan and Norway, Bangladesh Government schools and even other
corporations like BIC, ERIKS Development Partner, and KPMG.

Values and ethics must be an integral part of regular activities and education. Children
requires nurturing for the next generation of leaders to have value-based life and ethics. We
need values and ethics to ensure that all citizens are treated equally and can access their
rights. Code of Ethics is not only targeted towards children but also involves adults to create
a wholesome society which can lead with a strong character. Code of Ethics is a regular
reminder of the importance of values and ethics which need to be practiced by both children
and adults alike. For children, the Code of Ethics fosters kindness and dignity. For adults, the
Code of Ethics helps to make them a better person of character than yesterday.

4. Policy Elements

They are a set of principles that guide the behaviour of people in an organizational context.
They are essential to maintaining the legality of organizational and a healthy workplace.
Our code of ethics definition refers to the standards that apply to a specific setting – in this
case, our own organization.
Having our organizational ethics in writing doesn’t mean that we don’t trust our employees.
We strive to hire ethical people who have their own personal standards, so we expect that a
written code won’t be necessary most of the time.
But it can still be helpful. You may find yourself in a situation where you’re not sure how you
should act. Life is full of grey areas where right and wrong aren’t so apparent. Some
professional ethics also correspond to laws that you absolutely must know to do your job
properly, so we will mention them in our code of ethics.

_____________________________________________________________________________________
Date/Month Issued: Aug 2022
Version: 4.0
© No part of this document may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form without the express written
permission of Friendship

Name of the employee and ID:

Signature and Date
 Friendship Code of Ethics

For these reasons, we advise you to read this document carefully and consult with your
manager or HR, if you have doubts or questions.

4.1 The Components of our Code of Professional Ethics

We base our organizational code of ethics on common principles of ethics

1. Compassion- Feel the sufferings of others and feel motivated to help relieve that
suffering.
2. Confidence- Believe in yourself; try to do something even if other people say it is not
possible.
3. Courage- Stay strong in the face of difficulties and overcome the hardship.
4. Rights- Just as we are entitled to our human rights, respect human rights of others as
well.
5. Empathy- understand the needs, concerns and emotions of others.
6. Honesty- Not only speak the truth, be true to your actions and deeds.
7. Patience- Suspend quick judgement to have good decisions and prevent yourself from
giving up.
8. Justice- Make sure your intentions are fair and don’t disadvantage others.
9. Tolerance and Non-violence- Try appreciating diversity and accept others’ ideas and
beliefs. Be positive in action to resist oppression.
10. Dignity- Treat people as you want to be treated.
11. Humility- Be humble and try to put the needs of others before your own.
12. Commitment- Give your time and energy to something that you believe in and actually
doing it.

If anyone fails to maintain the above Code of Ethics, appropriate Disciplinary Action
will be taken as per the organizational policy including upto separation from the
service.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________
Date/Month Issued: Aug 2022
Version: 4.0
© No part of this document may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form without the express written
permission of Friendship

Name of the employee and ID:

Signature and Date
 Friendship Code of Ethics

_____________________________________________________________________________________
Date/Month Issued: Aug 2022
Version: 4.0
© No part of this document may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form without the express written
permission of Friendship

Name of the employee and ID:

Signature and Date