Over 200 business leaders and opinion formers from South Asia joined together in New Delhi, India, on September 26 to explore ways to create pathways towards a sustainable future. By joining together at the first “GRI South Asia Conference: Sustainability Reporting for a Sustainable Economy”, delegates showed their interest in disclosure and accountability, aiming to help make South Asian business more transparent.
Organized by GRI’s Focal Point India, in collaboration with the South Asian Federation of Accountants (SAFA), the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI), and the Centre for Responsible Business (CRB), the Conference aimed to contribute to GRI’s mission to make sustainability reporting standard practice. The objective of the Conference was to unite GRI’s South Asian network in the run-up to the 2013 GRI Conference to be held in Amsterdam in May 2013.
The Conference featured a Master Class on GRI and its Sustainability Reporting Framework. The conference was closed at a networking reception where the delegates from South Asia met with the high level members of GRI’s Governmental Advisory Group, which held its biannual meeting in New Delhi the following day.
Conference delegates agreed on the importance of sustainability reporting in today’s increasingly volatile and highly diverse world, and its significance at this point in time for South Asia. Herman Mulder, Chairman of the Board, GRI, remarked, “This is a great meeting at the right moment.”
Dr. M. Veerappa Moily, Honorable Union Minister, Ministry of Corporate Affairs & Power, Government of India, called conference delegates to action, “India’s business and investment communities are beginning to recognize the benefits of sustainability reporting and organizational transparency. Sustainability reporting is expected to rise in the coming years resulting from the regulatory impetus and a reinforced belief among Indian businesses that sustainability is integral to business, society and the world we live in. We are in a great transition time: India would like to showcase leadership by being the catalyst in the subcontinent.”
Speakers emphasized the importance of making plans “for the people, by the people, and with the people.” The conference room was filled with enthusiastic voices advocating improved engagement with stakeholders who read reports.
The speakers asked challenging questions such as “How can we prepare ourselves for the next great economic crisis?” and “How can sustainability help, while making a profit?” They also stressed the importance of taking sustainability reporting more seriously, giving it legal status and appraising and scrutinizing previous efforts.
The afternoon saw keynote addresses from four distinguished guests: Nesar Ahmad, President, Institute of Company Secretaries of India; Herman Mulder, Chairman of the Board, GRI; Naved Masood, Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India; and M. Veerappa Moily, Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs & Power, Government of India.
Source: GRI.
