Rt Hon Lord Jack McConnell, Chair, APPG for the Global Goals
In 2015 I was very happy to see the new United Nations Global Goals for Sustainable Development rooted in a wider agenda of prosperity and economic opportunity everywhere to make sure that individuals rescued from extreme poverty and vulnerability were independent not dependent as their lives improved. Since then, the best businesses have done more to implement the Sustainable Development Goals than most governments and traditional development NGO’s. But we can all do more.
Visiting Nairobi in November I saw for myself the potential for a different future. A profitable local factory making Ready to Use Therapeutic Food (sachets of peanut paste) for procurement by UNICEF and others. Commercially run with a brilliant young CEO Nikita Chandaria, using innovation and top-quality tech to keep their product competitive, training local people for new sustainable jobs. When I saw the impact of this food in the drought affected north of Kenya the next day, I was moved by the hungry reaction of the little ones receiving this boost to their nutrition, but also inspired to see the full economic cycle at work.
Later I met some young Kenyan entrepreneurs who had won awards from GenerationUnlimited, UNICEF’s skills initiative for older teenagers and young adults. In aquaculture, re-using waste, village toilet design and farming they were full of ambition and energy. Africa is rising indeed.
The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were agreed in 2015 as a shared blueprint for people and the planet, with a target date of 2030. 17 goals were adopted by all 191 UN Member states and included a global commitment to end extreme poverty, reduce inequality and address climate change. Unlike their predecessors, the Millennium Development Goals, the SDGs are a universal agenda, applying to all people, everywhere, no matter their stage of development. Countries must take ownership of the goals and commit to regularly reporting on their progress at Voluntary National Reviews, which take place at the UN High-Level Political Forum.
At this ‘halfway point’ to 2030, we have to recognise that progress towards the goals is too slow. Violent conflicts and the pandemic have derailed the momentum towards many of the goals, with fewer than 15% of the SDGs currently on track to be reached by 2030. Governments could have done more, and they must step up now. And this will be more successful in partnership with business.
Members of the ICC have a huge role to play in adopting sustainable business practices in line with the SDGs: eliminating modern slavery and other abuses in supply chains, investing in training and paying workers a living wage, and reducing carbon emissions at every stage of production and distribution.
Many businesses have joined the UN Global Compact: the world’s largest corporate sustainability and social responsibility initiative, working through chapters in over 130 countries to support businesses working towards broader UN goals, and particularly the SDGs. The Global Compact in the UK engages with thousands of businesses and organisations, and I urge anyone reading to contact their local chapter, to see how they can support your business to become more sustainable, and to play its part towards this vision of a better world.
Earlier this year, our All-Party Parliamentary Group for the UN Global Goals convened its annual Business and the SDGs Conference, held in the UK Parliament. Panelists from global businesses in different sectors shared how they have used the SDGs as a framework for adopting more sustainable business and governance practices, and the attendance of Minister for International Development Andrew Mitchell MP demonstrated government support for this agenda. I’ll keep pushing the UK government – of whatever political shade – to put the SDGs at the heart of the UK’s agenda for international development, and as a framework for domestic action too. Our Parliamentary caucus for the SDGs is one of the most active, with over 130 Members working to champion this agenda in Parliament and with government. During the consultation process for the UK’s new International Development White Paper, we worked closely with government to ensure that the SDGs were at the heart of the UK’s vision for ending extreme poverty and tackling climate change. But the Global Goals will only be delivered in a partnership between business and government, and that’s where the work of the ICC, and its millions of members, can play a really vital role
