Business neglects development: Nabiel
Business neglects development: Nabiel
A'an Suryana, The Jakarta Post, Jimbaran, Bali
State minister for the Environment Nabiel Makarim said on Sunday that business interests have continued to ignore sustainable development practices, even as the world has gathered in Bali to reaffirm its commitment to sustainable development.
However, the statement was challenged by representatives from the business sector, saying that they had integrated social and environmental factors into their business decisions.
Nabiel said that awareness about sustainable development was still low within the business sector, especially in Indonesia.
Most local companies were still profit-oriented, without regard to repaying their debts to the community under the drive of sustainable development, according to him.
"Business sectors have yet to show real commitment for sustainable development, such as involving local communities to reach sustainable development goals," Nabiel said at a meeting with representatives of the business community, senior government officials and environmentalists.
The UN preparatory committee meeting in Bali is entering its second week, as delegates from around the world discuss an action plan for sustainable development.
The meeting in Bali is a lead-up to the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Sunday's meeting with Nabiel was hosted by the UN Environment Program (UNEP) at the Bali Intercontinental Hotel in Jimbaran.
According to Nabiel, the lack of commitment is manifest in the, as yet, unfulfilled promises made by Indonesia's leading business tycoons for more equitable development, known as the Jimbaran Commitment, made in Jimbaran in the mid-1990s.
The 1997 economic crisis pushed the Jimbaran Commitment into oblivion.
Nabiel said that local companies continued to exclude local community voices in managing their operations.
Although many companies knew the importance of sustainable development principles, implementation fell far short.
This situation has not escaped UNEP's attention.
"There is a growing gap between the attempts of business and industry to reduce their impact on the environment and the worsening state of the planet," said Jacqueline Aloisi de Larderel, UNEP Assistant Executive Director.
Larderel's statement was contained in the UNEP report, which assessed 22 industrial businesses for their progress in implementing sustainable development principles since the 1992 Earth summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
According to Larderel, the gap resulted from a lack of commitment by companies to factor social and environmental considerations into business decisions.
Meanwhile, business representative Mike Longhurst acknowledged that some companies lacked a commitment to sustainable development, but others had gone far in promoting and implementing a sustainable development drive.
Longhurst, senior vice president of leading advertising agency McCann-Ericson, said that his company, through its funds, had helped to promote public awareness of sustainable development.
"This includes a campaign to shift the parochial attitude that not only the government must be responsible for sustainable development, but also the people," said Longhurst.
Chief executive director of Environment Business Australia Fiona Wain said that it was high time for business to integrate sustainable development into its decision-making.
"There is a growing awareness of people about sustainable development. In order to be competitive in 10 years' to 20 years' time, business must include sustainable development considerations into its decisions. Otherwise, it will not be perceived as competitive by consumers," Wain told The Jakarta Post after the panel discussion.