UN Global Compact calls for greater transparency and accountability from Indonesian Businesses at B20 Summit

At the B20 Summit in Bali, the UN Global Compact called for Business and Governments to build trust through communications and policies that are consistent, inclusive and transparent.

At the B20 Summit, the United Nations Global Compact (UN Global Compact) called for businesses in Indonesia to adopt greater accountability, transparency and integrity in their operations as the world continues to grapple with inflation, rising income inequality, the war in Ukraine and the climate crisis. This unprecedented set of global crises is steadily eroding the last decade of progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

During her keynote address Adopting Sustainable Business Policies and Social Responsibility to Promote Economic Growth, Assistant Secretary-General and CEO of the UN Global Impact, Sanda Ojiambo, called for businesses to integrate the tenth principle of the UN Global Compact against corruption and Sustainable Development Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions throughout their operations.  

“For the second year in a row, the world is no longer making progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. Private sector leadership is vital to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. We cannot tackle these global challenges alone. Business and government must work together. They must ensure they are transparent and accountable in their operations so they can accelerate the transformational change the world needs,” Ojiambo said. 

Ojiambo expressed her hope that the B20 will produce strategic decisions and agreements that could be implemented by all stakeholders to accelerate responsible business governance. 

Speaking about the work of the UN Global Compact in Indonesia, Y.W. Junardy, President of the Indonesia Global Compact Network (IGCN)  said, “We hold a mission to mainstream the 10 Principles of the UN Global Compact, which must be carried out through a multi-stakeholder collaboration to support the achievement of the SDG targets in Indonesia, as proclaimed in the Presidential Decree No. 111/2022.”

Junardy added that in its implementation, IGCN is advocating Five Thematic Focuses in accordance with SDGs: Business for Peace; Women’s Empowerment for Better Job Opportunities; Better Living Environment; Business Ethics & Governance; and Education/Teaching Transformation.

Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN) Arsjad Rasjid in his official statement noted that according to this year’s theme “Innovative Advancement, Inclusion, and Collaborative Growth”, the B20 encourages collaboration at sectoral and cross-sectoral levels, regional, national and international levels to enable the exchange of information and technology, as well as the development of productive and innovative solutions. 

IGCN also held a CEO Roundtable supported by Sinar Mas. Franky Oesman Widjaja, Board Member of Sinar Mas, noted that Sinar Mas is committed to mainstreaming the principles of the UN Global Compact into its Environment, Social, and Governance corporate strategies (ESG). 

“The implementation of SDGs throughout all business units is fundamental to our business strategy. This vision becomes the guide for us to achieve the company's ESG objectives more broadly and for a long term. As a company, we want to prove that the balance between business profits, environmental sustainability, good corporate governance, and social community building could contribute to achieving global development goals and bring our company to a higher level,” Widjaja said.

During the CEO Roundtable, IGCN launched the guidebook for business Uniting Against Corruption: A Playbook on Anti-Corruption Collective Action. “The Anti-Corruption Collective Action is a program currently being run by IGCN and is supported by the Indonesian Anti-Corruption Coalition (KAKI), Transparency International Indonesia (TII), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Indonesia, and Paramadina University,” Josephine Satyono, Executive Director of IGCN, said.

The UN Global Compact’s work also focuses on the sustainability of marine and oceanic resources to achieve equitable, inclusive, and sustainable human growth and welfare, which is in line with the launch of the National Blue Agenda Actions Partnership (NBAAP) resulting from cooperation between the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment of the Republic of Indonesia with the UN in Indonesia.

Notes to Editors

About United Nations Global Compact 

As a special initiative of the UN Secretary-General, the United Nations Global Compact is a call to companies everywhere to align their operations and strategies with Ten Principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. Our ambition is to accelerate and scale the global collective impact of business by upholding the Ten Principles and delivering the Sustainable Development Goals through accountable companies and ecosystems that enable change. With more than 15,000 companies and 3,000 non-business signatories based in over 160 countries, and 69 Local Networks, the UN Global Compact is the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative — one Global Compact uniting business for a better world. 

For more information, follow @globalcompact on social media and visit our website at unglobalcompact.org 

About Indonesia Global Compact Network (IGCN)

The Indonesia Global Compact Network (IGCN) is the local UN Global Compact Network in Indonesia, which strives to support and facilitate the business world and ecosystem in Indonesia, together with global communities, in contributing to the achievements of the SDGs in Indonesia by aligning business strategies and operations in accordance with the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact. To date, IGCN is supported by 124 business and non-business institutions from all over Indonesia.