Key Note Address at Chief Executive Officers’ Breakfast Meeting during the
Strengthening Inclusive Business Ecosystems Regional Training Workshop
Ms. Rosa Malango
United Nations Resident Coordinator/ UNDP Resident Representative
Uganda
Golf Course Hotel, Kampala, 20thApril 2016
Honourable Dr. Maria Mutagamba, Minister of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities,
Distinguished representatives of the Government and UNDP Country Offices,
Eminent Private Sector Leaders and Executives,
Development Partners,
Ladies and Gentlemen
I thank you all for taking the time off your busy schedules to join us this morning. It is indeed a pleasure and a privilege to address such a diverse gathering of individuals with vast knowledge and expertise.
I take this opportunity to welcome you all to the Pearl of Africa, and the postcard of African Tourism – Uganda, and urge you to take off part of your time during your stay to enjoy the beautiful scenery and unmatched biodiversity that this country has to offer.
Ladies and Gentlemen:The timing of this meeting is opportune for our continent – Africa. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have set a new scene for the way in which economic actors tackle key systemic barriers such as inequality, unsustainable consumption and production patterns, inadequate infrastructure and the lack of decent jobs. Achieving these goals will not be simple or cheap. According to best estimates developing countries will need between $3.3 trillion and $4.5 trillion a year in state spending, investment and aid to meet these goals. All sources of finance - public and private; domestic and international, have a central role to play.
It is however not just about finances but also the promotion of new technologies, business models, institutional mechanisms, legislation, regulation and policies that can dramatically accelerate progress towards sustainable development. This will require a partnership comprised of all stakeholders – governments, the private sector, development partners, multilateral banks, research institutions, advocacy organizations and communities.
In his address at the United Nations Private Sector Forum, UN Secretary-General Mr. Ban Ki-moon noted that, “the SDGs are unprecedented in their ambition – but the fundamental ways that business can contribute remain unchanged; and calls for even stronger commitment to partnership, especially on our most pressing challenges.”
The private sector has a central position in this partnership. Meaningful engagement with the private sector calls for openness and transparency-key ingredients in building accountability and trust, which are necessary for the functioning ofpartnerships. UNDP is committed to seeing that transparency is at the heart of its work, and to encouraging all actors in development to work to improve the transparency. To this end, I am pleased to inform you that after an intended assessment, UNDP was rated as the most transparent aid organisation in the world.
The 2015 Third International Conference on Financing for Development outcome document calls on businesses to engage as full partners in the development process and to apply their creativity and innovation in solving sustainable development challenges by investing in critical areas such as poverty eradication, ending hunger as well as shifting to more sustainable consumption and production patterns.
Building inclusive businesses holds the key to unlocking Africa's potential. Inclusive Business as a feature of inclusive market development as a feature of inclusive market development, represents a promising approach to bringing the benefits of economic growth directly to low-income people by including them within value chains.
It is within this spirit that UNDP believes that we need to develop and engage the private sector in Africa to actively contribute to inclusive growth especially through job creation, access to markets and income opportunities for the poor in line with the post 2015 agenda and SDG commitment to Leave no one behind.
More often than not, operating in low-income markets presents numerous challenges for inclusive businesses including inadequate financial access, lack of market information, limited knowledge and skills, a weak regulatory system and a poor operational environment. A supportive environment – inclusive business ecosystem - involving different stakeholders and actors is needed for businesses to achieve sustainable, inclusive growth that has the capacity to scale.
This breakfast meeting is one such opportunity – a platform for Africa to meaningful engage with the private sector in exploring opportunities for partnership and development pathways for the sustainable eradication of poverty and significantly reduction of inequalities and exclusion.
I congratulate you on taking this very important step and wish you fruitful deliberations.
Thank you for your kind attention.
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