Davos - Businesses that joined global efforts to end extreme poverty and protect the planet’s natural resources could reap great rewards and protect their long-term performance.
This was according to a new commission launched on Thursday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
The Global Commission on Business and Sustainable Development would, over the next year, work to articulate and quantify the compelling economic case for businesses to engage in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The commission was created by the former UN deputy secretary general Mark Malloch-Brown and Unilever CEO Paul Polman.
According to the statement from the commission, reasons for businesses to engage in working towards the SDGs included:
* Significant economic rewards - through new markets, investment opportunities and innovations - if the world tackled challenges including poverty, inequality and environmental stress
* Risks to business performance and stability, and increased fragmentation, resource competition and fragility, if the world failed to address these risks
* The necessity to work with governments, international organisations and civil society in order to build a future where businesses could perform – with inclusive, sustainable growth and widespread job creation
The Global Commission is set to bring together international leaders from business, labour, financial institutions and civil society who have been tasked to present a comprehensive report in one year’s time, outlining new business and financial models, as well as market opportunities for companies who were invested in sustainable approaches.
Since 2000, the world had seen extreme poverty more than halved. According to the WEF statement, business - which provided 60 percent of GDP, 80 percent of inward capital flows and 90 percent of jobs in developing countries - had been central to this success story, but could play a greater and more constructive role in realising growth and development opportunities.
“A massive prize awaits business if it successfully ushers in an era of shared prosperity and increased sustainability,” said Commission Co-Chair Malloch-Brown.
“Governments and international organisations alone cannot build the future we need. Business is the key to accelerating the transition.”
Unilever’s Polman said: “There is no business case for enduring poverty. We have an opportunity to unlock trillions of dollars through new markets, investments and innovation - but to do so, we must challenge our current practices and address poverty, inequality and environmental challenges.
“Every business will benefit from operating in a more equitable, resilient world if we achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.”
“There is a case to be made that vast economic incentives exist for changing business as usual,” said Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation.
“Business can create the fair wage jobs to propel societal development that leaves no one behind. Business innovation can deliver the technological advancements needed to achieve an efficient, net zero emissions economy. And business and society could both win, if more businesses recognise this and act upon it.”
The Global Commission on Business and Sustainable Development has been created to do five things:
* To decode the SDGs and show why it makes sense for business to engage on sustainable development at a far more strategic level than it has to date.
* To show how new business models can align profitability with social purpose.
* To map out how new financial tools can crowd in private capital and align economic and social returns.
* To show how business, government, and society can work effectively together to build the partnerships needed for SDG delivery.
* To quantify the efficiency gains in achieving sustainable development if business is fully aligned with the SDGs.
The Commission would conduct foundational research, and engage in fact-finding dialogue with a diverse cross-section of key stakeholders, including business leaders, investors, civil society representatives, social entrepreneurs and academic experts.
The Commission will be funded in part by the Rockefeller Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the governments of Australia, Denmark, The Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
In addition to co-founders Malloch-Brown and Polman, members of the Commission include:
* Laura Alfaro, Professor, Harvard Business School
* Peter Bakker, President, World Business Council on Sustainable Development (WBCSD)
* Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)
* Bob Collymore, CEO of Safaricom
* John Danilovich, Secretary General of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
* Hendrik du Toit, CEO, Investec Asset Management
* John Fallon, CEO of Pearson
* Ken Frazier, CEO of Merck & Company
* Mo Ibrahim, founder of Celtel and the Mo Ibrahim Foundation
* Donald Kaberuka, President, African Development Bank
* Sam Mostyn, President of the Australian Council for International Development (ACFID)
* Roberto Oliveira de Lima, CEO of Natura
* Dr Amy Jadesimi, Managing Director and CEO of Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics Base (LADOL)
* Lise Kingo, Executive Director of the United Nations Global Compact
* Arif Naqvi, Founder and Group Chief Executive of The Abraaj Group
* Vineet Rai, Co-Founder and Chairman, Intellecap
* Gavin Wilson, CEO of IFC Asset Management Company.
ANA