Governments Debating Sustainable Development Goals Hear How Business Can Help

(New York, 24 September 2014) – With more than 100 Heads of State in New York to open the United Nations 69th General Assembly, a side event presented viewpoints and specific recommendations from around the world on how business can be part of the world organization’s drive for a sustainable future.

Seventeen formal meetings were held in 2014 as part of an ongoing consultation process, in locations ranging from Beijing to Washington, DC, and from Bratislava to Dubai. The featured subject was how the private sector can best engage in implementing the UN post-2015 development agenda – the process to replace the Millennium Development Goals when they conclude in 2015. Global Compact Local Networks hosted eight of the sessions, and participated in nearly all consultations. The UN Global Compact and the United Nations Industrial Organization (UNIDO) are co-organizing the overall series, sponsored  by the governments of Spain and United States and coordinated by United Nations Development Group, which will continue later this year and into 2015.

At today’s side event at UN Headquarters, Governments and civil society received a consolidated report, Engaging with the Private Sector in the Post-2015 Agenda, on topics including partnerships, transparency and accountability, private sustainability finance, supportive government policies, and how to bring more small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) into the process.

Amina J. Mohammed, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Post-2015 Development Planning, outlined the importance of a strong private sector role in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are currently under negotiation at the UN, and will be considered for approval at next year’s General Assembly.

Roberto Dondisch, who represents Mexico in the SDGs negotiations, said that a key question emerging from the talks is how to implement the SDGs. His country has concentrated on finding the right ways to engage business, he said.

Ethiopian Ambassador to the UN Negash Kibret spoke on policies his country has instituted at the national level to encourage businesses and to engage them in dialogue on capacity building and development plans.

In a keynote address, the Honorable Mike Eman, Prime Minister of Aruba, also took up the issue of business-Government dialogue. He said that Aruba has initiated a goal-setting process in which they decided to cover environmental and social as well as economic aspects, and to include business as one of the key sectors to be consulted and to rely on for action.

Launching the consolidated report on consultations were UNIDO Director General Li Yong and UN Global Compact Executive Director Georg Kell. High-level officials from United States and Spanish development cooperation agencies, co-sponsors of the consultation process on the engagement with the private sector,  and the report, also  spoke, and spokeunderlined their commitment to enable private-public policy dialogue to be more effective in advancing the future SDGs.

A panel discussion featured Teresa Fogelberg from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and Cheryl Freeman from World Vision, as well as Natalia Federighi (Yara) and Jorge Soto (Braskem) representing corporate participants of the UN Global Compact. Ms. Federighi highlighted sustainability’s role in enabling consistent resources for creation of shared value with society. Partnerships provide the best means for business to expand its impact, Mr. Soto remarked, and the Global Compact can play an important role in partnership creation.

Global Compact Local Networks holding consultations to date in 2014 are from Austria, Brazil, China, Kenya, Indonesia, Mexico, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates. Colombia contributed strongly to a Latin America and the Caribbean regional event in Cartagena, and Turkey to a national consultation in Istanbul.

• Download the report: Engaging with the Private Sector in the Post-2015 Agenda

Contact

Marie Wibe
Government Relations
UN Global Compact
wibe@un.org