UN – IGCN CEO Meeting, Resident Coordinator's Speech, Gita Sabharwal

I am delighted to address you as we join forces to scale up the private sector’s invaluable contributions to the SDGs across Indonesia.  

As captains of industry, you play a critical role in accelerating the country’s green transformation by generating green jobs, strengthening sustainable practices and driving inclusion, amongst others.

Your leadership is also instrumental to delivering on the government’s policy goals as part of President Prabowo’s vision of 8% annual growth while ensuring energy and food security.

Indonesia has shown robust progress on the SDGs with 62% of indicators on track. 

This makes it one of the best performing countries in the region. 

However, challenges remain. Going forward, with the private sector accounting for 83% of Indonesia’s GDP, your commitment to sustainability will be crucial, especially in this era of fiscally stressed governments. 

Private businesses employ nine in ten of the workforce. The decisions you make as CEOs will make or break the achievement of sustainable green growth.

The IGCN has played a role in accelerating these efforts through its network of 154 companies with a combined annual revenue of $145 billion, creating more than half a million jobs.

This is where the Global Compact adds value. 

It provides a transnational platform for the Indonesian private sector to engage with global development trajectories. 

It also gives you a voice on the global stage to showcase Indonesia’s successes on sustainable development to the international community. 

This is especially important as countries in the Global South look to Indonesia’s leadership for forward-looking economic models and best practices.

ESG is increasingly becoming a board-level agenda for the Indonesian private sector. 

Integrating ESG metrics further into business operations will boost financial resilience, competitiveness, and long-term profitability. 

In Indonesia, industrial parks are increasingly aligning with international eco-standards, creating demand for best available technologies and environmental practices across factories.

Fast-tracking this transformation will require additional financing.

Research tells us that a 1% shift in ESG portfolios with banks across ASEAN can unlock an additional $28 billion financing for decarbonization efforts.

This is the scale of transformational investment that is required. 

Your leadership as CEOs is critical to this agenda. 

The UN is keen to partner with you to raise ambition by tapping into what you’re already doing — ESG, CSR, and sustainable development. 

All of these accelerate the SDGs while strengthening bottom lines in a win-win for businesses, communities, and the planet. 

The UN can contribute to this process in three inter-related ways:

First, we are bringing cutting-edge expertise to bear on scaling up ESG and carbon neutrality.

In Indonesia the UN partners with more than 3,000 factories in introducing best available technologies. 

These collectively contribute to 7% reduction in GHG emissions through renewables, energy savings, and wastewater treatment. 

Second, the UN, in partnership with government, is unlocking sustainable financing by leveraging green sukuks, blue bonds, and SDG bonds. 

This has led to $10 billion for green investments in sectors such as housing and energy. We are eager to scale up such instruments with you to mobilize additional financing for the ongoing green transformations in your respective sectors.

Third, we are working with the private sector to build on robust progress in CSR. 

All privately-owned companies in Indonesia have CSR projects, and by deepening our partnerships with you we can bring sustainability to scale.

Partnering with the private sector is an integral part of our work. 

I am eager to hear from you today about how we can leverage our partnerships further to scale up ESG, SDG, and innovative financing. 

Today’s dialogue is an example of your commitment to sustainability in support of Indonesia’s global leadership. 

The transformative changes we can achieve by working closely together will be models for other nations to emulate around the world.

Thank you.