Sustainable development should not be merely made a choice but a compulsory measure for all construction and development businesses to sustain growth, speakers at a symposium said.
The ASEAN Sustainable Development Symposium 2014, held for the fourth year, aimed at materialising sustainability for the entire supply chain while reaching out to establish a network throughout ASEAN.
Kan Trakulkoon, president and CEO of SCG, which hosted the event, said the network will lead to a real sustainable development throughout the entire process of businesses.
“It is evident that the world population is set to increase to over 9 billion within the next 35 years, whereas the natural resources have become ever so limited. More than 200 business leaders around the world had unanimously agreed in the “Vision 2050” that it is mandatory for businesses to make a balance between human economy and natural resources.
Kan said the construction and development industry should create and make a better society to live in. “The sustainable development is then not merely a choice, but a ‘must have agenda’ for all businesses that requires thorough planning and tangible scheming so that we can maintain our business growth and at the same time sustain our limited natural resources and make a good balanced living.”
SCG said the symposium hopes to establish a tangible knowledge-based platform for everyone, including the government, the private sector and the financial institutions for further business expansions in ASEAN.
Roongrote Rangsiyopash, chairman of SCG Sustainable Development Committee, said that SCG has its own sustainable master plan in which it emphasises on its own internal operation before reaching out to the entire production processes – from the supply chain to the end users.
“An example of SCG’s collaboration is the Community Partnership Association which initiated from a group of operators in the Map Ta Phut industrial estate of Rayong province. Another example is the Cement Partnership Initiative in Saraburi province. This alliance consists of cement producers who are in fact competitors working hand in hand for a common objective, a sustainable society. This successful outcome can never be possible without collaboration,” he said.
“We need to reform by working together,” said Kan. “And that does not only mean sharing information, joining each other’s CSR projects, or passing the torch and execute, but to whole-heartedly collaborate with a thorough strategic plan that will become a true force for real sustainability throughout ASEAN in the future.”
