UNGC Seeks to Attract 50 Saudi Companies for Sustainability Development Program

The Federation of Saudi Chambers signed on Thursday an agreement to host the UNGC Network Saudi Arabia in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Federation of Saudi Chambers signed on Thursday an agreement to host the UNGC Network Saudi Arabia in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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UNGC Seeks to Attract 50 Saudi Companies for Sustainability Development Program

The Federation of Saudi Chambers signed on Thursday an agreement to host the UNGC Network Saudi Arabia in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Federation of Saudi Chambers signed on Thursday an agreement to host the UNGC Network Saudi Arabia in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Federation of Saudi Chambers signed on Thursday an agreement to host the UN Global Compact Network Saudi Arabia in Riyadh, with direct support from the United Nations Resident Coordinator Office.

The agreement aims to enhance the role of the private sector and the continuity of corporate sustainable partnerships aligned with the 2030 agenda and Saudi Vision 2030.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Natalie Fustier, the UN resident coordinator in Saudi Arabia, said that the Kingdom was committed to achieving progress in the UN 2030 Agenda and all 17 sustainable development goals.

She stressed the need to further encourage the participation of the private sector, to achieve sustainable development goals promptly.

Fustier added that she was looking forward to making the local network of the Global Compact in Saudi Arabia a model for the region and beyond.

For her part, Maryam Telmesani, chair of the Global Compact Network Saudi Arabia, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Network had already attracted 36 Saudi companies and was seeking to increase the number to 50 companies by the end of 2022.

The UNGC is a non-binding pact to encourage businesses and firms worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies.

Telmesani added that the establishment of the Global Compact Network in the Kingdom was part of the UN efforts to expand the scope of partnership with the private sector, to promote sustainable long-term partnerships aligned with the 2030 Agenda and Vision 2030.

She noted that since 2015, a significant number of companies were able to demonstrate the transformative impact of their technologies, products, services, and business models in a measurable manner.

Acting Secretary-General of the Federation of Saudi Chambers Hussein Al-Abdulqader said that the Federation was keen to host the local network of the UNGC, to enhance and enable the participation of the private sector in implementing the UN Sustainable Development agenda.

He added that the UNGC - the largest voluntary initiative aimed at promoting corporate social responsibility - included more than 12,000 members of businesses and organizations from 170 countries around the world.



French PM Opposes Calls to Go back to 62 as Retirement Age

 France's Prime Minister Francois Bayrou visits the plant of French rolling stock manufacturer Alstom in Aytre near La Rochelle, western France, on March 14, 2025. (AFP)
France's Prime Minister Francois Bayrou visits the plant of French rolling stock manufacturer Alstom in Aytre near La Rochelle, western France, on March 14, 2025. (AFP)
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French PM Opposes Calls to Go back to 62 as Retirement Age

 France's Prime Minister Francois Bayrou visits the plant of French rolling stock manufacturer Alstom in Aytre near La Rochelle, western France, on March 14, 2025. (AFP)
France's Prime Minister Francois Bayrou visits the plant of French rolling stock manufacturer Alstom in Aytre near La Rochelle, western France, on March 14, 2025. (AFP)

Prime Minister Francois Bayrou on Sunday rejected the idea of reverting to 62 as the basic retirement age in France, appearing to narrow options for unions and employers negotiating changes to an unpopular pension reform.

Bayrou, who heads a fragile minority government, agreed to reopen discussion of the 2023 reform, including the contested measure to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 years, to help secure tacit support in parliament from opposition Socialists.

He tasked union and company representatives to discuss changes, saying all options were on the table provided proposals would ensure a funding deficit would be plugged.

Asked in an interview on France Inter radio if it was possible to go back to retirement at 62, he said, "No."

"The representatives in the social conference know very well what the numerical situation is and which I asked the Court of Accounts to set out," Bayrou said, referring to a report by France's audit office projecting future deficits even after the 2023 reform.

At the same time, he did not see retirement age as the only path for reforming the pension system, he said.

If unions and employers fail to agree to proposals, the government plans to proceed with implementing the 2023 reform.