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The Forum has attracted over 150 leaders from the country’s leading private sector firms, civil society and government to discuss how businesses and particularly business leaders can be at the forefront of innovatively investing in ESG as a means to accelerating the achievement of SDG targets. CEO East Africa Magazine, caught up with Stephen Mukasa, the Country Head of the CEO Summit Uganda the organisers of the Forum to understand the significance of the Forum and why it is a must-attend for business executives.
Who is CEO Summit Uganda, the organisers of the #CEOForum2022?
The CEO Summit Uganda is a private sector think tank which brings together all Tier 1 corporate leaders in Uganda. We are a place where growth-oriented organisations challenge, catalyse and champion transformation in leadership and management. The CEO Summit’s mandate is to prepare leaders at all levels in the organisation for exponential disruptive change and growth – both at a personal and team level – through the provision of executive education programs that address gaps in leadership and other technical areas such as board dynamics, strategy, change, performance to mention but a few.
This year, you will be holding the 13th edition of the Annual CEO Forum. What is this CEO Forum all about?
The Annual CEO Forum was first held in 2009, as then, an optimal response to the financial meltdown of 2008 and still is, the platform for the captains of industry to debate and rethink the economy, to drive mutually beneficial partnerships to address each other’s woes and to become catalysts for action and change – both at organisational and societal levels.
This year’s forum is being held under the theme: “Beyond Sustainability – Strategic Choices that Matter”. What informed this year’s theme? How does the theme attempt to solve some of the ongoing challenges such as the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic as well as climate change?
The 2022 Forum seeks to drive a phenomenal shift towards purpose beyond profit to pave the way for the shared value journey within the context of business sustainability. Across industries, geographies and businesses, the profile and visibility of the intersection between business and society is becoming more and more prominent or even categorically put: desirable. The conundrum of how to balance or achieve the intersection amongst the 3 Ps: Profits, People and Planet; is what the Forum is seeking to address and highlight. Seen from this bigger picture, if captains of the industry address themselves to the question of purpose, beyond profit, then most of the challenges of the day can be addressed either proactively or correctively.
How does one attend the #CEOForum2022?
This is a high-level conference for all C-suite executives, entrepreneurs, and parastatal and development agency heads, and for any information regarding their attendance or participation, they are encouraged to contact Ms. Faith Auma (+256 783 052 897 or fauma@ceosummit.ug) – the CEO Forum Coordinator. We look forward to their participation.
What will those who do not come to the event miss? Or why should anyone want to spend their time tuning in or attending the Forum?
They will miss out on getting to understand or even appreciate the huge phenomenon of Sustainability vs ESG – a lot of insights, ideas, demystification of myths, and anecdotes on the Sustainability Agenda will be discussed. We shall also call on the captains of industry to embrace, adopt and walk the talk of the SDGs.
Many people love to think that sustainability and ESG are boardroom talk and indeed many organisations seem to do more talking than putting into practice, what they say. How significant is ESG to businesses and the bottom line as well as their broader stakeholder ecosystems? How is it important to national development?
ESG is not only restricted to the Boardroom, in fact, but that is also the myth that we would like to demystify at the Forum. ESG is such a noble humanitarian cause that affects everyone on this planet. It aims to improve the quality of our lives, protect our ecosystem and preserve natural resources for future generations. Practising sustainability and enforcing ESG ensures that we make ethical choices that bring a safe and liveable future to everyone – hence enforcing the Golden Rule (of treating others well, as we would like them to treat us).
A 2021 survey of more than 1,000 CEOs from around the world by the UN Global Compact found that 87% believe the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide an opportunity to rethink approaches to sustainable value creation. Some 70% of those CEOs “see the SDGs providing a clear framework to structure sustainability efforts”.
Lastly, consumers are increasingly aware of the impact they have in selecting brands focused on ESG, while corporations are increasing public awareness of their efforts. Google, Nike, Adidas and numerous auto manufacturers (such as Toyota, Nissan, Kia, and Honda) have of late been drumming up awareness about their ESG initiatives and asking the world to follow suit. Companies are becoming more public with their inclusion practices and net-zero emissions pledges. Organisations participating in e-commerce are also promoting their initiatives to reduce both the environmental impact of shipping materials and the carbon costs of transporting products directly to customers. The pressure is also extending to entities within their supply chain.
This year you will be discussing ESGs and SDGs. Is there a connection between the two? Why combine them?
Yes, there’s a connection between the 2 – let us unpack them and see the correlation: ESG in full is ‘Environmental, Social and Governance and represents a more stakeholder-centric approach to doing business. Environmental refers to the Preservation of our natural world, Social focuses on human equity and our interdependencies, and finally, Governance looks at Logistics and defined processes for running a business or organization.
A number of SDGs feed into ESG, for instance, SDGs 6, 7, 11, 13,14, and 15 feed into the Environmental facet; SDGs 3, 4, 6, 8, 11, 14 & 15 address the Social aspect and lastly SDGs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 16 & 17 address the Governance aspect. As you can see, all the SDGs support or supplement or even better put – reinforce the ESG mandate and this is why at this year’s CEO Forum – we shall make a clarion call for each CEO or captain of industry or entrepreneur to adopt the SDG(s) they will make their own or champion going forward.
ESG is too important a topic to be discussed once. How do you intend to sustain this conversation, post this upcoming Forum?
You could not have put it any better; indeed ESG is such a humongous topic that cannot be exhaustively discussed in one forum. Please be informed that at the end of the Forum, we shall launch the Sustainability Leadership Centre – which will spearhead and ensure continuous dialogue on ESG and the Sustainability agenda in Uganda. The Centre will also be responsible for disseminating Executive Programs that will sensitise organisations on ESG and at the same time be responsible for conducting ESG metrics in all organisations.