UNGC: Corporate Citizenship in the World Economy

“Let’s combine the power of markets with the authority of universal values, and the creative power of the entrepreneur with the needs of the left-behind and future generations” this is how Kofi Annan former UN Secretary General summed up the idea of the UN Global Compact in 2000.

With over 7.700 corporate participants, stakeholders from over 130 countries and existing or emerging local Networks in approximately 90 countries, the UN Global Compact (UNGC) is the largest corporate responsibility initiative in the world.

The UN Global Compact is a both a policy platform and a practical framework for companies that are committed to sustainability and responsible business practices. As a leadership platform endorsed by chief executives, it seeks to align business operations and strategies everywhere with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. The Global Compact seeks to combine the best properties of the UN, such as moral authority and convening power, with the private sector’s solution-finding strengths, and the expertise and capacities of a range of key stakeholders. The initiative is global and local; private and public; voluntary yet accountable. The Global Compact has a unique constellation of participants and stakeholders, bringing companies together with governments, civil society, labour, the United Nations, and other key interests.

Objectives

1. Mainstream the ten principles in business activities around the world
2. Catalyse actions in support of broader UN goals, including the Millennium Development Goals

By doing so, business, as the primary agent driving globalization, can help ensure that markets, commerce, technology and finance advance in ways that benefit economies and societies everywhere and contribute to a more sustainable and inclusive global economy.

For more information on how to participate in the UN Global Compact visit: www.unglobalcompact.org/HowToParticipate/index.html