The document discusses how the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a unique framework for India's development agenda by addressing key issues like poverty, hunger, inequality, and climate change. It outlines the Government of India's approach to adopting the SDGs through various ministries and schemes aimed at goals like skill development, healthcare, education, and infrastructure. While the government is helping create an enabling ecosystem, achieving the SDGs will require complementary efforts from diverse stakeholders, including local businesses playing a critical role in driving scale and pace of India's transformation.
2. Table of Contents
1. Relevance of Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs) for India
2. Government of India’s approach towards
adopting the SDGs
3. SDGs – a unique framework for creating
business value
4. Business case for acting on the SDGs
5
Foreword
Preface
3
4
13
21
5. Key enablers
26
8
3. Foreword
In 2017 and 2018, India’s economy is expected to grow at
over 7%, positioning us as one of the fastest growing
economies in the world. However, growth alone is not
sufficient in today’s world as the global development goals
have added a new dimension to the growth agenda.
The imperative now is to achieve growth in a manner that
positively impacts the environment and society at large.
Given this context, the 12th
National Convention of the
Global Compact Network India presents a very relevant
theme – “Making Global Goals, Local Business – India”.
This year marks the second year since the launch of
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Over the past two
years, businesses have undertaken various measures to
demystify the SDG framework and prioritize goals for their
sustainability initiatives. As we move ahead with the
transformation journey envisaged by the SDG framework,
it is critical to identify mechanisms to scale-up the efforts
to integrate development goals into the mainstream
business agenda.
In this context, I believe this study can be immensely
helpful for businesses to understand the best practices
that leading organizations are adopting to create business
value while addressing India’s development needs. The
report also highlights some of the existing gaps and
challenges which different stakeholders need to
collectively address as we move ahead with our
transformation journey.
I would like to thank Global Compact Network India and its
knowledge partner, Accenture Strategy, for undertaking
this critical study. I sincerely hope that it helps businesses
and other key stakeholders to scale-up their efforts to
drive India’s growth and holistic transformation.
Dinesh K Sarraf
(Chairman and Managing
Director, Oil and Natural
Gas Corporation Ltd.
(ONGC).
President, Global Compact
Network India)
3
4. Preface
The Global economy today is characterized by a rapidly
evolving business context. Be it macro-economic
developments such as BREXIT, or the emergence of a new
wave of digital disruption, there are clear signs that the
world we live in is changing rapidly. What has not changed
is the continued need to address some of the largest
development challenges faced by economies across the
globe – i.e. issues such as poverty, hunger, inequality, and
climate change, amongst several others.
This changing macro-economic context provides an
interesting back-drop against which businesses operate
today. On one hand, there is a critical need to keep pace
with trends such as digital disruption. On the other hand,
there is a growing need to create shared value – i.e. achieve
growth in a way that helps address world’s development
challenges. In this dynamic business context, the 12th
National Convention of the Global Compact Network India
(GCNI) represents a unique platform for businesses to come
together and reflect on the new era of opportunities and
development challenges that lay ahead.
Through this study we demystify the huge opportunity for
businesses in India to view global goals as enablers of
growth and differentiation. In conducting this study, we
followed two principal strands of research.
Firstly, we conducted extensive secondary research to
understand India’s current scorecard on the SDGs and
the role leading businesses are playing to address the
development challenges.
Secondly, we conducted a short survey with business
leaders to capture their perspectives and priorities
around addressing development goals while pursuing
profitable growth targets.
We sincerely thank all organizations that participated in the
study. We hope that the insights captured in this study will
be helpful for businesses as they look to scale-up their
efforts around integrating development goals with the
mainstream business agenda.
Kamal Singh
(Executive Director,
UN Global Compact
Network India)
Vishvesh Prabhakar
(Managing Director -
Communications, Media, &
Technology, and
Sustainability
Accenture Strategy, India)
Sundeep Singh
(Principal – Sustainability,
Accenture Strategy, India)
4
5. Launched in 2015, the SDGs represent a set of 17
development goals that were formed with the objective
of shaping the world’s development agenda for the
period 2015 through 2030. Right from the beginning,
the Government of India demonstrated a strong
commitment to address the development goals by
mapping India’s development needs against the 17
SDGs. A close look at each of the 17 SDGs in the Indian
context highlights the enormous potential and
relevance of the SDG framework in shaping India’s
transformation agenda.
“Today, much of India’s
development agenda is mirrored
in the Sustainable Development
Goals.”
- Narendra Modi,
Prime Minister of India
5
1. Sustainable Development
Goals for India
Relevance of
Potential to drive India’s transformation
Improved
quality of life
Equitable
growth
Impact on
environment
Remarks
At 224 million, India has 30% of its population living
under the international US $1.90-a-day poverty line1
~15% of India's total population is undernourished,
representing one quarter of the world’s
undernourished population
~44% of children in India under the age of 5 are
underweight. As a comparison, it is only 0.7% in
North America2
~30% of India's population has access to 65% of
hospital beds3
~66% of children in India don’t receive vaccinations
on time versus ~10% in the US4
The gender gap in pay-scales in India is ~67%
(considerably higher than the global average of 40%)6
Women participation in the workforce is 27%
versus 51% in OECD countries7
Only ~2% of government schools provide complete
school education from Class 1 to Class 125
~600 million people lack access to sanitation
facilities
~21% communicable diseases in India linked to
unsafe water8
Table 1: Relevance of SDG framework for India
6. 20% of India's population lacks access to electricity;
fossil fuels represent 75% of India's primary energy
mix9
Currently, 35-40% of food produced is wasted14
India uses 2-4 times more water to produce a unit
of major food crop than China or Brazil15
33% of college graduates in India are unemployed,
compared to 5.6% in the US10
India currently ranks 81st
amongst 140 countries on
the Global Competitive Index for Infrastructure11
India is the 2nd
most unequal country with
millionaires controlling 54% of the wealth12
Indian cities will need over US $800 billion in
infrastructure investments over the next 20 years13
Experts suggest that India will face altering
monsoon patterns, leading to unpredictable floods /
droughts16
The Indian Ocean is home to 126 vulnerable species,
27 endangered species, and 8 critically endangered
species17
Pre-mature deaths due to air pollution in India have
increased by 50% between 1990 and 201518
As on 8th
March 2017, a total of 24 million cases were
pending in various courts in India with several
thousands in waiting for over 10 years19
India ranks first in the world in "Operational
Maturity" for Public Private Partnership (PPP)
projects20
6
Relevance of the Sustainable Development Goals for India
Potential to drive India’s transformation
Improved
quality of life
Equitable
growth
Impact on
environment
Remarks
7. Mr. Tom Albanese
(CEO, Vedanta
Resources Plc
and Vedanta
Limited)
Leadership Perspective
What are your top three priorities to integrate global goals into local
businesses?
Standardize our interventions with global causes in a more meaningful
manner.
Benchmark our plans in a holistic manner and track progress to
demonstrate improvement.
Have a larger & broader scope of intervention to be seen as a proactive
and responsible player.
What could be the impact potential from these priority opportunities?
Clear correlation of our intervention with the global cause and need to
promote sustainability.
Seen as a responsible company with the bandwidth to contribute towards
global challenges.
Internal reference framework to define objectives and targets to focus on.
What are the biggest challenges that need to be overcome to achieve
this?
Clear understanding and expectations from business contributing
towards achievement of the SDGs.
Collaboration of various role players in coming on-board with a common
aim.
Government policies and practices to incentivize businesses to give
SDGs a strategic importance.
What are your top three recommendations for the businesses to
integrate SDGs into the mainstream business agenda?
Prioritization of SDGs in alignment with business and sectoral
requirements.
Consolidation of existing activities contributing directly or indirectly
towards achievement of SDGs.
SDGs (Priority) action plan to fill in the gaps with respect to
requirements and existing action.
Please share your favourite initiative of effectively adopting the SDG
agenda and impact created.
Project “Nandghar”, construction of Aanganwadis (approximately 4,000)
across the country. This project results in contribution to the following
areas:
Poverty alleviation
Gender equality
Clean water and sanitation
Affordable and clean energy
7
8. In its part, the Government
of India has launched a
series of initiatives to
create an ecosystem
conducive to addressing
the development
challenges faced by the
country.
“Just as our vision behind Agenda 2030 is lofty, our goals are
comprehensive. It gives priority to the problems that have
endured through the past decades. And, it reflects our evolving
understanding of the social, economic, and environmental
linkages that define our lives.
The sustainable development of one-sixth of humanity will be of
great consequence to the world and our beautiful planet.”
- Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India
2. adopting SDGs
Government of India’s
approach towards
Associated
ministries
Illustrative
schemes
Illustrative actions
and targets
Ministry of Rural
Development
Ministry of Skill
Development &
Entrepreneurship
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna
Pradhan Mantri Fasal Beema
Yojana
Skill India Program
Mahatma Gandhi National
Rural Employment Guarantee
Act
The Skill India Mission targets skilling
more than 40 crore people in India by
2022 with the aim to combat
challenges of poverty and
unemployment21
Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmer’s Welfare
Ministry of Consumer
Affairs, Food & Public
Distribution
Target Public Distribution
System
National Nutrition Mission
National Food Security Mission
The National Food Security Mission
set a target of 25 million tonnes of
additional food grain production in
the 12th
five-year plan22
Ministry of Health &
Family Welfare
Ministry of Drinking
Water & Sanitation
Pradhan Mantri Swasthya
Suraksha Yojana
National (Rural) Health Mission
The Pradhan Mantri Surakshit
Matritva Abhiyan
The 2017 National Health Policy
seeks to increase the government
expenditure on health (as a % of
GDP) from the existing 1.15% to
2.5 % by 202523
Ministry of Human
Resource Development
Ministry of Skill
Development &
Entrepreneurship
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan
Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao
Padhe Bharat, Badhe Bharat
To bridge the internet skills gap,
the government aims to spend INR
1,800 crore on the digital literacy
mission (for 60 million people in
rural areas)24
Ministry of Women &
Child Development
National Mission for
Empowerment of Women
Support to Training and
Employment Programme for
Women
There is a target to actively support
women empowerment (for e.g., a
scheme offers up to 75% funding for
projects promoting women
employment)25
8
Table 2: Government of India’s efforts to combat development goals (illustrative, not intended to be exhaustive)
9. Ministry of Drinking
Water & Sanitation
Ministry of Water
Resources, River
Development & Ganga
Rejuvenation
National Rural Drinking Water
Programme
Swachh Bharat Mission
The Swachh Bharat flagship
program aims to construct more
than 10 crore toilets by 2019 (out of
which 2 crore toilets have been
built so far)26
Ministry of New &
Renewable Energy
Ministry of Power
Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram
Jyoti Yojana
Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar
Mission
India's solar power generation target
is set for 100 GW by 2022. About 60%
of this will be met through grid
connected solar power projects.27,28
Ministry of Labour &
Employment
Ministry of Urban
Development
Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana
National Policy on Skill
Development
The National Policy on Skill
Development has set a target of
skilling 500 million people by 202229
Ministry of Road
Transport & Highways
Ministry of Civil Aviation,
Railways, Shipping
My Gov Innovation
India Infrastructure Project
Development Fund
Border Area Development
Programme
In the union budget for 2016-17, the
government announced a total outlay
for infrastructure development of over
INR 2 lakh crore30
Ministry of Social Justice
& Empowerment
Ministry of Micro, Small
& Medium Enterprises
Niryat Bandhu Scheme
Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana
(PMMY)
Multi Sectoral Development
Programme for Minorities
PMMY scheme seeks to provide loans
of up to INR 10 lakhs for small
enterprises (and has a lending target
of over INR 2 lakh crore for 2017-18)31
Ministry of Housing &
Urban Poverty
Alleviation
Ministry of Urban
Development
Urban Infrastructure
Development Scheme
Smart City Mission
Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana
The Government has earmarked INR
48,000 crores for its smart city
mission and has already announced
the first 60 planned smart cities32
Ministry of Environment &
Forests & Climate
Change
Ministry of Consumer
Affairs, Food & Public
Distribution
National Policy on Bio-Fuels
National Clean India Fund
Credit Linked Capital Subsidy
Scheme
The Ministry of Environment targets
providing funding support for select
projects (for e.g., a scheme funds 25%
costs for projects setting up
treatment/ disposal facilities on PPP
basis)33
9
Government of India’s approach towards adopting SDGs
Associated
ministries
Illustrative
schemes
Illustrative actions
and targets
10. Ministry of Environment
& Forests & Climate
Change
National Action Plan on Climate
Change
National Afforestation
Programme
National Mission for a Green
India
India ratified the Paris Agreement on
climate change and pledged to
reduce its carbon emission intensity
by 33-35% (from 2005 levels) by
203034
Ministry of Fisheries &
Agriculture
Department of Animal
Husbandry, Dairying &
Fisheries
National Coastal Zone
Management Programme
Blue Revolution: Integrated
Development and Management
of Fisheries
The Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmer’s Welfare launched the Blue
Revolution with a target to increase
fish production at a CAGR by 8%
and reach 15 million tonnes by
202035
Ministry of Environment &
Forests & Climate
Change
Ministry of Tribal Affairs
National Biodiversity Action
Plan
Project Elephant
National Afforestation
Programme
The Compensatory Afforestation
Fund Bill aims to increase India’s
forest cover from 21% of the total
land to 33% of the total land36
Ministry of Law & Justice
Ministry of Personnel,
Public Grievances and
Pensions
Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan
Yojana
Black Money Disclosure
Window
Pragati Platform (Public
Grievances Redressal System)
For faster delivery of justice, GoI
approved eCourts Phase-II project
with a total cost of Rs. 1,670 crore
over a period of 4 years37
Ministry of External
Affairs
Ministry of Finance
Ministry of Corporate
Affairs
Digital India Mission
BRICS
SAARC
Launched NGO Partnership System
(NGO-PS) and NGO DARPAN portals
to promote collaboration between
key government ministries and
NGOs38
These initiatives clearly demonstrate the Government’s commitment to combat the gigantic
challenges posed by the SDGs. However, is this enough? The consensus (based on inputs
received from diverse stakeholders) is that while the Government push is certainly helping
create the right ecosystem, the overall success of addressing the SDGs would depend on
complementary efforts of diverse stakeholders. This is where the businesses can play a critical
role to help achieve desired pace and scale for India’s transformation journey through 2030.
10
Associated
ministries
Illustrative
schemes
Illustrative actions
and targets
Government of India’s approach towards adopting SDGs
11. Mr. Nilanjan
Bhattacharya
(Country Head &
Head of
Corporate and
Institutional
Banking – India,
Westpac Banking
Corporation)
What are your top three priorities to integrate global goals into local
businesses?
Gender Equality:
Embracing societal change.
Supporting gender equality: Women in leadership target of 50% by
2017.
Affordable and clean energy:
Undertaking scenario analysis to understand the longer-term impacts
of limiting global warming to below two degrees celsius above
pre-industrial levels.
$6.2 billion total committed exposure to CleanTech and environmental
service sector.
Reduced inequalities:
We have introduced initiatives to help people with money and ways to
make banking more accessible.
Microfinance for businesses that weren’t able to access finance.
New foundation program to back not-for-profit social enterprises.
What could be the impact potential from these priority opportunities?
Gender Equality: At 2016 women leadership target was 48%. Percentage
of employees working flexibly increased from 63% (2014) to 74% (2016).
Affordable and clean energy: Raised $500 million through Westpac
Climate Bond issue and increased proportion of renewable energy
financing from 45% to 59% in total electricity generation portfolio, since
2011.
Reduced inequalities: 59,596 Participants in Financial Education. We’ve
backed 1,000 businesses with microfinance and 2,900 employment
pathways and jobs created by social enterprises supported by Westpac
Foundation over two years.
What are the biggest challenges that need to be overcome to achieve
this?
One of the biggest challenges for banks to pursue a rigorous SDG agenda
in their dealing with clients is the inability to showcase this as a
meaningful competitive advantage.
What are your top three recommendations for the businesses to integrate
SDGs into the mainstream business agenda?
Map and assess points of alignment between SDGs and existing business
and sustainability strategies.
Identify SDGs where the business can influence positive progress.
Monitor progress through internal performance metrics and relevant
outcome metrics.
Leadership Perspective
11
12. 12
Please share your favourite initiative of effectively adopting the SDG
agenda and impact created.
Internally – Westpac’s issuance of AUS $500 million climate bond in May
2016. This initiative is providing investors a high-grade fixed income
investment, with funding allocated to seven wind energy facilities and five
low carbon commercial properties. Westpac believes in the power of
mobilizing capital markets (in this case, bond markets) to support the
transition to a net zero emission economy.
Externally – Unilever’s Lifebuoy soap improving hygiene in rural India. To
help address health problems caused by poor hygiene in rural areas of
India, Unilever introduced an 18 gram bar of Lifebuoy soap—enough for
one person to wash their hands once a day for 10 weeks—for a price of
two rupees. This affordable price point is combined with a public
education and outreach campaign targeted within the eight Indian states
where deaths from diarrhoea-related diseases are highest and soap sales
are lowest.
Leadership Perspective
13. “And yet, it is not too late to reshape
agriculture and food systems to
better feed the world and deliver
sustainable development. No doubt,
governments must play a critical role,
but it is not their responsibility alone.
It requires an unprecedented effort
by all sectors in society, and business
must be at the heart of this
endeavour.”
- Kofi Annan, Former UN
Secretary-General, Chair of the Kofi
Annan Foundation
3.
SDGs -
a unique framework for
creating business value
The time for businesses to embrace and leverage SDG framework is here and now.
Based on a triennial CEO Sustainability study39
conducted by Accenture and UNGC in 2013:
The subsequent edition of the study40
conducted in 2016 revealed that for the first
time business leaders accepted the mandate
for a radical change and view SDGs as a
universal roadmap for action. In fact, the study
found that around 87% of the CEOs surveyed
believe that the SDGs provide an essential
window of opportunity for businesses to
rethink their approach to sustainable value
creation.
An overwhelming majority of CEOs (around
93%) believed that sustainability would be
important to the future success of their
business.
Despite that, 67% of the leaders felt that
business is not doing enough to address
global sustainability challenges.
13
Our study highlights that that despite the
diverse nature of development goals and
underlying value creation opportunities, there
is a common theme in terms of levers of value
creation. High performing businesses
typically realize value from the SDG-focused
initiatives through four value creation levers –
revenue growth, cost reduction, risk
mitigation, and enhanced brand image.
Given the diverse nature of development
challenges, there are a myriad of ways in
which businesses can leverage the SDGs to
create business value. The key is to identify
and prioritize goals which may be best
aligned with the business activities and
focus areas.
Identifying natural alignment with the business focus may be the key.
14. “We can unlock growth by breaking
the bias on gender, but only if our
sustained actions create a snowball
of change. We must move forward,
not back.”
-Lise Kingo, CEO and Executive
Director, United Nations Global
Compact
For instance, an FMCG organization may be
well positioned to impact the SDG related to
‘Good Health and Well-Being’ by providing
access to hygiene products at affordable
prices to rural India (thereby creating
business value by getting access to a huge
untapped market). Similarly, an organization
operating in services industry may find it
more meaningful to drive gender equality
through equal growth opportunities for its
women employees (thereby creating business
value through a vibrant, balanced and more
productive workforce).
14
Figure 1: Levers of value creation and illustrative underlying opportunities
SDGs – a unique framework for creating business value
Differentiate products / services
from competition
Broaden products and services
portfolio via sustainable innovation
Stimulate more usage and extend
availability through new channels
INCREASE
REVENUE
IMPROVE
INTANGIBLES
Attract and retain talent
Improve consumer / customer trust
and loyalty
Foster positive and collaborative
relationships with governments and
regulators
Enhance social value from positive
media coverage
Manage price volatility through
adopting circular business models
Protect “license to operate and grow”
by engaging stakeholders
Reduce regulatory and litigation
risks
LOWER RISK
Reduce cost of production through
more efficient material usage
Reduce utility spend through energy
efficiency
Improve supply reliability and supplier
productivity
REDUCE COST
INCREASEPOSITIVE
LESS TANGIBLE/
LONGER TERM
REDUCENEGATIVE
MORE TANGIBLE/
SHORTER TERM
15. Mr. Roland Folger
(MD and CEO,
Mercedes-Benz
India)
Leadership Perspective
What are your top three priorities to integrate global goals into local
businesses?
Climate change.
Quality education.
Responsible consumption and production.
What could be the impact potential from these priority opportunities?
Addressing the climate change challenge would also open up new
opportunities for society to grow and prosper. It would lead to the
development of new innovative technologies.
Business can play an important role in improving quality of education
which in turn would reduce unemployment, ensure the talent pool and
thereby drive the economic growth.
The entire supply chain from suppliers to dealers can make a significant
impact in promoting human rights, fair labour practices, environmental
program and corruption policies.
What are the biggest challenges that need to be overcome to achieve
this?
Out of date education which is not in conformity with needs of industry
and business.
Making sustainability as a priority in supply chain can face challenges
due to varied scale, legal structure, and degree of importance given by
the organizations involved.
What are your top three recommendations for the businesses to
integrate SDGs into the mainstream business agenda?
Make Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) a regular business agenda.
Undertake projects which would have a long-term impact on society.
Integrate the Sustainable Development Goals across the supply chain.
Please share your favourite initiative of effectively adopting the SDG
agenda and impact created.
We collaborate with government/non-government vocational education
institutes to create facilities and curriculum for skill development which
would cope-up with fast changing technology. Every year students who
pass out of the program are immediately employed in the Industry.
15
16. Mr. Lalit Kumar
Gupta
(MD and CEO,
Essar Oil Limited)
Leadership Perspective
What are your top three priorities to integrate global goals into local
businesses?
The top three priorities for Essar Oil Limited are education, health &
livelihoods, thus correspondingly aligned and feeding into the
achievements of the following SDGs in particular: SDG2, SDG 3, and SDG4.
What could be the impact potential from these priority opportunities?
The impact potential of education and health programs would be high in
the medium and long-term and comprise of achieving enhanced learning
levels, achieving 100% literacy and bringing down dropout rates in
schools, improved health indicators and low incidence of epidemics. This
would further reflect in improved livelihoods and improved lifestyle. The
impact potential of Essar Oil Limited initiatives covers 9,000 households
across 15 villages in in Jamnagar and Devbhumi Dwarka districts.
What are the biggest challenges that need to be overcome to achieve
this?
The mismatch between the enormity of the social concerns and the
budget availability.
The priorities of CSR may not necessarily match with the immediate
areas of concern by government functionaries.
Convince the communities to own the programs to attain long-term
sustainable impacts.
What are your top three recommendations for the businesses to
integrate SDGs into the mainstream business agenda?
Designing the CSR programs based on the actual needs of the
community and then integrating them with the SDGs.
Chosen SDGs should be integrated with the mainstream business
agenda and the core competency.
Business should consider itself as an integral component and key player
of the ecosystem.
16
17. Leadership Perspective
17
Please share your favourite initiative of effectively adopting the SDG
agenda and impact created.
Essar Foundation has designed a unique, innovative program called
“Indradhanush - Shiksha Ke Saat Rang” to celebrate freedom of learning in
Jamnagar district of Gujarat. The objectives of the program are to:
Equip the teachers with skills and building their capacity in Activity
Based Learning (ABL).
Introduce the children to various activity-based and interactive mediums
and models of learning.
Provide hands-on experience to teachers and students in new
teaching-learning techniques.
In the past six years 9,000 students have been reached in the region and
Essar Oil intends to implement the program for a long timeframe.
18. Transformational companies focus on creating ‘shared’ value.
Based on the varying level of maturities (with respect to integrating business agendas with the
development agenda), organizations can broadly be classified into four distinct categories. The
framework presented below can help organizations identify the zone in which they currently
operate and explore their aspirational position while progressing on their journey towards a
high-performing business.
18
Figure 2: High performance framework for businesses
Traditional
Focus on corporate
profit maximization;
less or no focus on
sustainability
initiatives
Lagging
Struggle on business
performance; not able
to envisage benefits
from adopting
sustainability
Transformational
Stellar business
outcomes; able to
capture trapped
business value
through sustainability
initiatives
Niche
Charity, philanthropy,
or development sector
focused organizations;
do not necessarily
subscribe to a
profitability model
Sustainability Leadership
BusinessPerformance
SDGs – a unique framework for creating business value
19. Transformational organizations view the
global goals as a framework to differentiate
themselves and create value in the form of
one or more of the four key levers –
revenue, cost, risk, and brand.
Traditional organizations showcase great
business performance in terms of high
revenue growth, positive cash flows and
high ROIs, but are unable to tap new
markets or realize cost savings, which
adopting the global goals would otherwise
offer.
Niche organizations may not necessarily
have a business model inclined towards
profitability. These could be non-profit
organizations or social enterprises with
developmental issues at the core. These
organizations have a clear social mandate
and may potentially rely on external sources
of funding for the sustainability of their
operations.
Lagging organizations struggle with
business performance and have a very weak
commitment to sustainability. They may
undertake traditional charity based ad-hoc
initiatives but are not committed to drive
sustainable growth and differentiation.
In the next section, we turn our attention to
some examples of transformational
organizations that are already reaping
business benefits from their SDG-focused
initiatives.
19
SDGs – a unique framework for creating business value
20. Mr. Rana Kapoor
(MD and CEO, YES
BANK)
Leadership Perspective
What are your top three priorities to integrate global goals into local
businesses?
Create enduring impact at bottom of pyramid through financial inclusion
& leveraging Fintech.
Invest in positive impact sectors including renewable energy, energy
efficiency, water, climate-smart agriculture and smart cities, amongst
others.
Mobilize finance towards climate action through innovative financial
instruments like green bonds, credit enhancements and blended finance
to provide sustained economic returns.
What could be the impact potential from these priority opportunities?
FINTECH has the potential to exponentially increase the efficiency of
distribution of financial services through mobile wallets and money
transfer tools.
There is a huge business opportunity in investing in positive impact
sectors. Water, for instance, is currently an unorganized sector and it is
expected that an investment of USD 1 (INR 65.37) would give an
economic return between USD 3 – 4 (INR 196.10 – INR 261.47), indicating
an RoI of up to 300%.
What are the biggest challenges that need to be overcome to achieve
this?
Availability of finance.
Access to finance.
Affordability of finance.
What are your top three recommendations for the businesses to
integrate SDGs into the mainstream business agenda?
Align core business strategy to mainstream SDGs implementation.
Integrate environmental & social concerns in risk management
framework to make it more holistic and ensure sustainable growth.
Institutionalize internal capacity building of employees through training
and development on E&S risks and opportunities.
20
Please share your favourite initiative of effectively adopting the SDG
agenda and impact created.
The most significant step has been the launch of Green Bonds, wherein
YES BANK became the first Indian entity to issue green bonds raising INR
1,000 crores in February 2015. Benefits of YES BANK’s foray into the green
bond market were multi-fold, resulting in both internal and external
movement. Following YES BANK’s first issuance, others followed suite, and
there have been a total of 14 issuances thus creating a market towards
green financing.
21. Case study of high-performing businesses
Organization Initiative
Business
impact
Revenue
Cost
Risk
Brand
Afforestation program
where ITC helps tribal and
marginal farmers grow
commercially viable
pulpwood plantations.
Generated over 100
million person-days of
employment till date.
Secure wood pulp
supply
Improved brand
image
Our study highlights several transformational players that are leveraging the SDG framework to
create shared value – i.e. value for the businesses and communities. These examples illustrate
the vast breadth of opportunity that lays ahead of corporate India, an opportunity that can only
be realized through an integration of global goals with the mainstream business agenda.
4. SDGs
The business case for
acting on the
ITC
21
DuPont is partnering
across value chain – (with
farmers and food
companies) to apply
science-based solutions
to enhance nutrition,
safety, and quality of
food. Also helps reduce
food waste across the
value chain.41
Improved revenue
potential through
differentiated
products and
competitive
advantage
Improved brand
image
DuPont
Through its ‘Blueprint for
Change Program’ -
reached 16 million Indians
and diagnosed over
300,000 people for
Diabetes and alerted
almost 125,000 people at
risk of becoming diabetic
since 2002.42
Annual reach of
diabetes patients
growing at ~14%
Perceived as a
leader in diabetes
care by patients
and healthcare
professionals
Novo
Nordisk
Through the ‘Nand Ghar’
initiative, Vedanta works
with the Ministry of
Women and Child
Development (MWCD) –
aims at imparting
education and vocational
skills to 400,000 child
and women beneficiaries
by 2019.43
Improved brand
image and positive
relationships with
the communities
Vedanta
Table 3: Examples of transformational players creating business value through the lens of SDGs
22. 22
Case study of high-performing businesses
Organization Initiative
Business
impact
Revenue
Cost
Risk
Brand
Project Shakti aims at
empowering women in
rural India. Women from
rural regions are trained to
operate as sales agents,
which provides them with a
source of livelihood.44
Access to new
markets
Steady last mile
delivery mechanism
Improved brand
patronage
Hindustan
Unilever
Single deep water aquifer
in Neemarana for
industrial and agricultural
use posed risk. SAB Miller
trained farmers and
partnered with local
agencies to reduce water
consumption.45
Reduced costs by
securing access to
sustainable water
supply
Avoided conflict
with local
stakeholders
SAB Miller
Committed to using 100%
renewable energy in its
manufacturing operations
by 2030. In 2015, 5% of
total electricity used was
sourced from renewables.
Cost saving of over INR 16
Cr each year.46
Reduced costs
from alternative
energy sourcing
Tata
Motors
Works closely with
governments and local
partners to impart
training on sustainable
livelihood and decent
jobs. Until 2016, trained
almost 100,000
individuals through this
program.47
Improved brand
image
Potential to employ
local workforce
Aditya Birla
World’s first airport to run
100% on solar power.
Generates more
electricity than needed,
feeds excess units into
the grid.48
Additional revenues
from feeding
electricity into grid
Cost savings from
reduced utility
expenses
Cochin
International
Airport
Limited,
Kochi
The business case for acting on the SDGs
23. 23
Case study of high-performing businesses
Organization Initiative
Business
impact
Revenue
Cost
Risk
Brand
Focused on expansion in
rural areas, building up on
momentum gained
through PM Jan Dhan
Yojna. Engaged Indian Oil
Corporation’s Kisan Seva
Kendra to extend banking
services to extremely
remote areas.49
Increased revenues
from new customer
base
Cost savings from
using shared
infrastructure
Improved brand
image
State Bank
of India
A mission intended to
make cities more
efficient, liveable, and
sustainable. Government
to invest ~INR 500 Crores
per shortlisted city over a
span of 5 years.50
Additional revenues
from PPP models,
user charges,
municipal bonds etc.
Cost savings
through efficient
resource (utilities)
and asset
(infrastructure)
utilization
Government
of India,
Smart Cities
Mission
Nike Grind works with
several companies to
upcycle and repurpose
Nike’s pre-and-post
consumer waste. The
waste materials from
shoes are used to make
sports turfs, running
tracks, carpet inlays etc.51
New revenue
streams from
repurposing waste
Reduced waste
management costs
Improve brand
value
Nike Grind
YES BANK successfully
issued India’s first green
infrastructure bond in
2015, making India
seventh largest green
bond market globally.52
New revenue
streams through
differentiated green
bonds portfolioYES BANK
An initiative designed for
marine biodiversity
conservation; also aims to
improve sustainable
fishing, livelihood
generation, and
eco-tourism
development.53
Broad based cost
savings for the
government from
efficient
conservation efforts
Avoided risk of
depleted fish
stocks in the
coastal region
MoEF and
UNDP -
Sindhudurg
Coast
The business case for acting on the SDGs
24. 24
Case study of high-performing businesses
Organization Initiative
Business
impact
Revenue
Cost
Risk
Brand
Through their ‘Reviving
the Green Revolution’
initiative, promoting
agricultural diversification,
water saving crops,
improved soil health, and
overall ecosystem
conservation.54
Improved brand
image
Tata Trusts
Focused efforts on
improving organizational
transparency and
anti-corruption programs.
Transparency
International Index of
2014 ranked ONGC at 26th
position among 124 of
world’s largest publicly
listed companies.55
Improved brand
image
Avoided ethics and
compliance risksOil and
Natural Gas
Corporation
Ltd. (ONGC)
International Financial
Corporation (IFC)
collaborated with five top
real estate developers in
India to promote
sustainable and
affordable housing.56
New revenue
streams through
differentiated
product portfolio
Cost savings from
efficient resource
utilization
Sustainable
Housing
Leadership
Consortium
The business case for acting on the SDGs
25. Please share your favourite initiative of effectively adopting the SDG
agenda and impact created.
Tata Chemicals Water Mission through Swach.
Improving the lives of rural artisans through Okhai.
Dharti ko Arpan (Tata Chemicals’ program to restore and conserve
ecosystems).
Mr. R Mukundan
(Managing
Director, Tata
Chemicals)
What are your top three priorities to integrate global goals into local
businesses?
Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation
for all.
Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources.
Inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive
employment, and decent work for all.
What could be the impact potential from these priority opportunities?
These opportunities will help not only to preserve precious natural
resources, but also lead to sustainable and inclusive growth and positive
impact on health and standard of living.
What are the biggest challenges that need to be overcome to achieve
this?
The biggest challenges are:
Awareness
Sensitivity towards the cause
Translating aspiration into action
Therefore, huge effort will be required for appropriate communication and
people’s participation.
What are your top three recommendations for the businesses to integrate
SDGs into the mainstream business agenda?
Lead by example - put a stake in the ground by taking up an audacious
target around a cause and work towards it.
Invest in terms of man-hours and thought leadership, not just monetary
resources, to evangelize.
Measure own progress and make an honest effort to deliver the change.
Leadership Perspective
25
26. “We are trying to show that you can
be successful as a business and at
the same time show the financial
community this should be one of the
better drivers for their investments.”
-Paul Polman, CEO, Unilever
In today’s rapidly changing macro-economic
environment, businesses are increasingly
required to innovate operating models,
access new markets, and identify potential
avenues for growth and differentiation. In this
dynamic and increasingly competitive world,
businesses also confront a strategic choice
with respect to the adoption of the SDG
framework. The choice is simple - either to
integrate SDGs as a part of the mainstream
business agenda or pursue sustainability
initiatives under the umbrella of a separate
CSR function.
This is a critical choice as it can have a
significant impact on the medium-to long
term fortunes of an organization. There is
ample evidence that for an organization to
emerge as a true high-performer, business
leaders should embrace the SDG framework
as a mainstream business agenda and the
same should then percolate to different
business divisions, all the way to individual
employees in the form of their day-to-day
responsibilities. For instance, the ‘Sustainable
Living Plan’57
undertaken by Unilever, under
the leadership of its CEO Paul Polman,
demonstrates how sustainability vision
defined by the leadership can pave for an
organization to emerge as a high-performing
business.
In today’s age of digital disruption,
technologies hold the key to drive
transformation at scale and pace. In the global
context, technologies such as
Internet-of-Things (IoT), Drones, 3D printing
and Robotics are increasingly being used to
accelerate global transformation agenda.
It is also interesting to note that several global
organizations are beginning to experiment
with digital technologies to develop innovative
operating models. For instance, Amazon’s
Prime Air initiative (which aims to leverage
drones to deliver small packages) has the
potential to deliver disruptive business
benefits while helping drive efficient usage of
resources.
5. Key enablers
Having analyzed how businesses can integrate global goals and realize new business
opportunities, we now turn our attention to the key enablers and critical success factors for this
transformation.
26
Strategy and Purpose
Digital Solutions
27. In the Indian context, digital technologies
also hold enormous potential to help
businesses in delivering transformative
benefits. However, a key consideration would
be businesses’ readiness to experiment with
the traditional operating models and appetite
for innovation.
Leading companies gain advantage by
realizing synergies in technologies, supply
chain innovation, and customer bases.59
For instance, as a part of its Sustainable
Living Plan, Unilever has set an internal
goal to enhance the livelihood of women
and smallholder farmers while
simultaneously growing business by 2020.
To achieve this, the organization has
actively forged partnerships with players
across the value chain – such as farmers,
retailers, and consumers, in collaboration
with a wide range of NGOs and private
stakeholders.60
27
Impact Area Possible Technologies Potential Business Applications
(i.e. SDGs such as Zero
hunger, Quality education
etc.)
Precision agriculture, e-learning, smart security
etc.
Relief shipment, aerial surveillance – (e.g.,
Drones can potentially reduce medical supply
delivery time from 15 hours to 15 mins)
IoT, Big Data
Drones
(i.e. Reduced inequalities,
Decent work and economic
growth)
Brain Computer Interface promotes equitable
growth by helping people with disability to be
independent and perform at par with everyone
else58
Transparent transactions and elimination of
intermediaries help distribute wealth equitably
Robotics, Artificial intelligence
Blockchain
(i.e. SDGs such Life below
water, Life on land, Climate
change etc.)
Smart traffic, sensor-based monitoring (e.g.,
Autonomous vehicles have the potential to
reduce tailpipe emissions by 80%)
Smart manufacturing (e.g., 3D printing can
reduce global energy use by up to 2,584 billion
kWhs by 2025)
Autonomous vehicles, IoT
3D printing
Table 4: Use of digital technologies to drive global transformation agenda (illustrative, non-exhaustive)
Key enablers
Stakeholder
Collaboration
& Partnerships
Better quality
of life
Inclusive and
equitable growth
Protecting the
environment
28. “The ambitious sustainable
development goals require an equally
ambitious financial system to
mobilize the necessary finance.”
-Rana Kapoor, MD and CEO, YES
BANK
While pursuing the ambitious
transformation encompassed by the SDG
framework, there is a critical need to be
cognizant of the underlying risks and
challenges.
A transformation program of this scale
would invariably entail multi-stakeholder
engagements, complex long term projects,
and significant infusion of funds. Given the
sheer scale of these programs, there may
be a tendency for inefficiencies and
malpractices to creep into the execution
agenda. In this context, it would be
imperative to execute the entire
transformation agenda with the highest
ethical standards and enhanced
transparency for all the stakeholders
involved - consumers, corporates, investors,
Government bodies, NGOs, citizens,
amongst others.
Interestingly, as per the Edelman’s Trust
Barometer, in 2017, the trust in government
institutions in India is at an all-time high61
.
However, this year the trust in Indian CEOs
has diminished by eight percentage points
vis-à-vis the last year. This represents a
potential opportunity for the businesses to
undertake targeted initiatives to regain the
citizen trust.
One of the fundamental ways in which the
SDGs differ from previous frameworks is that
the SDGs require sustainable and diverse
funding sources from the government and the
private sector alike.
The investments are needed to support all
goals, including quality R&D for innovation,
massive capital investments for infrastructure
capacity expansion, testing and scaling of
proven solutions, and financing of new
techniques. By current estimates, India needs
around INR 3.5 trillion to successfully meet the
targets laid out in Agenda 203062
. This is
another area where businesses have an
opportunity to put a stake in the ground and
become an integral part of India’s
transformation journey.
28
Governance, Ethics,
and Transparency
Financing and
Investments
Key enablers
29. Dr. Raman
Ramachandran
(Head South Asia,
Chairman &
Managing
Director – BASF
India Limited)
Leadership Perspective
What are your top three priorities to integrate global goals into local
businesses?
Safety – EHS
Innovation
Sustainability
What could be the impact potential from these priority opportunities?
Safety: Our strict adherence to safety standards establishes a benchmark
for the Industry in general.
Innovation: We have set up BASF Innovation campus in Mumbai in 2017
with an investment of Euro 50 million. The facility at full capacity would
accommodate around 300 scientists and will engage in cutting edge
research in the areas of crop protection, process development and
polymer research.
Sustainability: BASF’s accelerator range of products (products that have a
significant sustainability contribution in the value chain) go a long way in
addressing these sustainability challenges.
What are the biggest challenges that need to be overcome to achieve
this?
Consistent enforcement of regulatory standards.
Consistent and transparent implementation of IPR policy.
An educational system that fosters innovation.
Please share your favourite initiative of effectively adopting the SDG
agenda and impact created.
BASF’s accelerator range of products contribute 27.2% to BASF’s sales
worldwide.
Customers’ use of BASF’s climate protection products worldwide
resulted in avoidance of 540 million metric tons of CO2
equivalents in
2016.
29
What are your top three recommendations for the businesses to
integrate SDGs into the mainstream business agenda?
Resources, environment and climate:
Find new alternative energy sources.
Reducing the environmental footprint of buildings over their life cycle.
Quality of life:
Provide adequate supplies of clean, safe drinking water.
Providing affordable housing.
Food and nutrition:
Providing sufficient volumes of nutritious food for the growing human
population.
30. Mr. Manish
Tandon
(CEO, CSS Corp
Pvt. Ltd)
Leadership Perspective
What are your top three priorities to integrate global goals into local
businesses?
Climate Action
Responsible Consumption
Quality Education
What could be the impact potential from these priority opportunities?
Energy efficiency, lowered energy consumption.
Reduced consumption of natural resources, responsible end of life
e-waste handling.
Enhanced job skills & employability.
What are the biggest challenges that need to be overcome to achieve
this?
How to measure and report impact?
Identifying effective partners in implementation.
Please share your favourite initiative of effectively adopting the SDG
agenda and impact created.
Climate Action (Sustainable Development Goal 13) - Usage of Light
Emitting Diode (LED) bulbs instead of Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFL)
resulted in reduction of 15 tonnes of CO2
, 18,733 kWh of power
consumption and elimination of handling mercury from disposed CFL.
30
What are your top three recommendations for the businesses to
integrate SDGs into the mainstream business agenda?
Reporting sustainability more prominently.
Encouraging employees to accept & achieve sustainability goals.
Identifying & integrating applicable SDGs with organization processes.
33. 33
Acknowledgements
Study Leads
Kamal Singh
Vishvesh Prabhakar
Lead Authors
Sundeep Singh
Jay Thakkar
Pooja Kumar
Sukanya Deshmukh
The authors would like to thank the following people for their insights
and assistance
Ritesh Kapoor
Pranshu Gupta
Amanpreet Talwar
For further information, please contact:
Kamal Singh
Executive Director
UN Global Compact Network India
kamal.singh@globalcompact.in
Vishvesh Prabhakar
Managing Director,
Sustainability,
Accenture Strategy, India
vishvesh.prabhakar@accenture.com
Sundeep Singh
Principal,
Sustainability,
Accenture Strategy, India
sundeep.singh@accenture.com
34. 34
About
About Global Compact Network India
Global Compact Network India (GCNI), formed in November 2000, was registered in 2003 as a
non-profit society to function as the Indian Local Network of the UN Global Compact, New York. It is
the first Local Network in the world to be established with full legal recognition. It, also as a country
level platform for businesses, civil organizations, public and private sector, aids in aligning
stakeholders’ responsible practices towards the Ten Universally Accepted Principles of UNGC in the
areas of Human Rights, Labour, Environment and Anti – corruption, broad UN goals including
Sustainable Development Goals and other key sister initiatives of the United Nations and its
systems.
At present, the India Network ranks among the top 10, out of more than 90 Local Networks in the
world. It has also emerged as the largest corporate sustainability initiative in India and globally with
a pan India membership of 230 leading business and non-business participants and 341
signatories, strengthening their commitment to the UN Global Compact Principles by becoming
proud members of the Local Network in India.
For more details, please visit www.globalcompact.in
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