May 17, 2003	Saturday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 14, 1424

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window).

ISLAMABAD, May 16: Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar on Thursday pledged full support of the Government of Pakistan in implementing the UN Global Compact (GC) for harnessing the potentialities of private entrepreneurship with needs of human society.

Speaking at a function to mark the Media Launch of the GC, he acknowledged that the Compact could lead to poverty alleviation and national development and thus help in the government’s policy in that direction. The function was attended by government representatives, various Islamabad-based UN agencies, employers and civil society organisations.

Fasihul Karim Siddiqi, Chairman Employers Federation of Pakistan (EFP) Multilateral Policy-Coordination Committee, and Sohail Altaf, representative of Federation of Pakistan Federation of Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI), endorsed the objectives of the GC and assured the UN representatives of their full support in its implementation.

Explaining the GC concept, Onder Yucer, UN Resident Coordinator in Pakistan, said it was proposed in January 1999 by the UN Secretary General at the World Economic Forum when he asked the business leaders to contribute to a more sustainable market by embracing and implementing nine principles in the areas of human rights, labour and environment.

The government and the UN system in Pakistan, Mr Yucer said, recognised that the business sector had much to contribute to development challenges and progress of the country.

Initiatives such as the GC, he pointed out, had a special significance in view of the fact that Pakistan was striving to enhance the investment level, privatisation process and business relations with other countries.

In this context, the UN system proposed, in consultation with key stakeholders in the government, private and labour sectors, to launch the GC in Pakistan later this year as a framework for better interaction and increased partnership between the public and the private sectors.

Acknowledging its critical role in advocating and raising awareness about this initiative, the UNDP official said, “We see the media as a partner to mobilise a critical mass of business leaders and promote a corporate behaviour conducive to realisation of GC’s objectives.”

While acting as the lead advocate for Corporate Governance and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), the UN system would define and try to implement concrete partnership projects within the priorities of UN Development Assistance Framework which has just been agreed to by the Government of Pakistan.

Under this framework, four priority areas of cooperation have been chosen: participatory governance, poverty alleviation, health and education.

Mr Yucer officially announced the launch of Pakistan Global Compact web site - www.globalcompact.org.pk. The lead agencies involved in implementation of GC are the UNDP, Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), ILO and the UN Environmental Programme (UNEP).

Mr J. Lokollo, Director ILO Office, Islamabad, drew the audience’s attention to the UN secretary general’s statement that if the private sector, as a dominant engine of growth and principal creator of value and managerial resources, does not deliver economic growth and economic opportunities - equitable and sustainable around the world - then peace “will remain fragile and social justice will be a distant dream”.

Dr Hafiz Pasha, UN Assistant Secretary General and Director UNDP Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, in his speech, elaborated the significance of GC for Pakistan.