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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)
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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.

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China Unveils ‘Special Action Plan’ to Boost Domestic Consumption

Local Chinese tourists walk along the the Turret of the Forbidden City of Beijing, China, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Local Chinese tourists walk along the the Turret of the Forbidden City of Beijing, China, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
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China Unveils ‘Special Action Plan’ to Boost Domestic Consumption

Local Chinese tourists walk along the the Turret of the Forbidden City of Beijing, China, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Local Chinese tourists walk along the the Turret of the Forbidden City of Beijing, China, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

China's State Council unveiled on Sunday what it called a “special action plan” to boost domestic consumption, featuring measures including increasing residents' income and establishing a childcare subsidy scheme.

The plan comes as levels of consumer demand in China have suffered various setbacks in recent years, due to factors such as COVID-19 disruptions and a prolonged property slump, chilling the propensity of households to spend and adding to deflationary trends.

The plan was issued to all regions and departments to “vigorously boost consumption, expand domestic demand in all directions, improve consumption capacity by increasing income and reducing burdens,” a report from the Council said.

The plan comes a week after Chinese Premier Li Qiang's work report to the National People's Congress which focused on boosting household spending to cushion the impact of weak external demand.

Pressure has been building on Chinese officials for consumer-focused stimulus measures to fend off deflationary pressures and reduce the world's second-largest economy's reliance on exports and investment for growth.

The plan released on Sunday called for increasing urban and rural incomes and said farmers' incomes should be boosted by measures such as housing reforms.

The action plan was wide-ranging but was limited in promising concrete resources to support local governments as they formulate actual measures to implement the plan.

The plan also envisaged measures to stabilize the stock market but gave no details on when and how this could happen.

Authorities should “study and establish a childcare subsidy system,” as well as implement flexible employment and the opening of pediatric outpatient clinics at night in general hospitals. Community and employer-run childcare services are also to be encouraged.

Workers' rights and vacation days must be guaranteed and paid annual leave and short holidays should be encouraged. Financial subsidy standards for urban and rural residents' basic pensions are also to be increased.

There were also proposals to boost tourism such as expanding the number of countries whose travelers don't need visas.

Caption: Customers shop at the Wankelai store in Beijing, China February 27, 2025. Reuters/Tingshu Wang/File Photo