Need To Bring Equilibrium, As To Every Benefit, There Is A Cost Being Paid: Siraj Chaudhry, Chairman, Cargill Foods
On 20th December, the UN Global Compact Network India (UN GCNI) and BMW Group India jointly hosted India Sustainability Dialogue 3.0 themed ‘SDGs as Growth Drivers’, where the dialogue focused on how corporates can contribute towards three major areas of development in India- Sustainable Cities and Communities, Responsible Consumption & Production and Partnership.
The dialogue was hoping to build consensus within the Indian corporate sector on the measures that can be employed to expand its activities in the three key themes; the possible impact it can have on businesses and key stakeholders like local communities, employees, supply chain actors, government and civil society; the existing good practices; the role of technology and innovation as well as changes needed to the existing policy environment.
In the first plenary session about Responsible Consumption and Production, the role of corporates was discussed. In his keynote address, Mr. Siraj Chaudhry, Chairman, Cargill Foods, said, “There has been exponential growth in the world in the last 2 decades, and there has been phenomenal economic and technological growth. But while there is a benefit, there is a cost being paid. We need to bring the equilibrium, that there are benefits of growth, but there is a cost being paid. There are issues of not everyone growing. Social inequality and youth unemployment is worsening in countries across the world. There is widespread deforestation, water-related diseases and natural disasters which have doubled since 1980’s. Action taken by every business leader counts. The role of business is to find opportunities in these problems, by driving sustainable innovation, investment in cleaner production and consumption and so on.” He also added, “The areas of intervention can be in the realm of food and agriculture, cities, energy and materials and health and well-being. We need to improve forest ecosystems, promote sustainable agriculture, reduce food wastage loss, engage in technology innovation, build resilient cities with energy-efficient buildings and with efficient transportation and road safety, expand renewable energy and energy storage systems with circular models, ensure nutrition, access to healthcare services and have healthcare awareness. It has to be done through collaborations with all key stakeholders”.
The session was chaired by Anurag Goel, Former Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India & Adviser- SDGs, Government of Assam. “Assam has always been a leader in terms of SDGs, as ratified by Jeffrey Sach’s letter to the Assam CM. Everybody has a different perspective on SDG. It is a question of bringing all the complete perspectives together in a composite hold. We need to go to 2030 and work backwards. The impact of disruptive technology has to be taken into account. Another important aspect is that no one is to be left behind in terms of achieving SDGs. In Assam, we think it’s about people, partnerships, and projects. Even after 2 years, people are unsure in the state and the centre who is to look after SDGs, which department and so on, there is very little awareness. I would request the panelists to look at how the future of business is affected by disruptive technology and how it impacts sustainability, then I would like them to address how the lack of awareness regarding SDGs can be tackled along with partnerships and thirdly, resource mobilization and change management“, said Goel.
