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• OnedayPearl Initiative and United Nations Global Compact regional Forum to discuss ways to advance sustainable development priorities in Gulf Region
• Held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai
Dubai - On 16th April 2015 at the Dubai World Trade Centre, the Pearl Initiative, the leading independent private sector-led not-for-profit organisation working across the Gulf region to encourage better business practices, and the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), the world's largest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative with 8,000 corporate signatories and 4000 other stakeholders in over 160 countries, will hold their inaugural Forum in the Gulf Region under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai.
The event is expected to bring together over 500 regional and international business leaders, representatives from UN organisations, government and civil society around the theme 'Corporate Accountability Matters; Business Integrity and Value Creation Beyond 2015'. Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy, UAE Minister of State and Board Representative Higher Committee & Director General Bureau, Dubai Expo2020, will give the keynote address.
"Improving corporate accountability, transparency and governance is fundamental to fostering future competitive economic growth, spurring job creation and enhancing sustainable social development in the Gulf Region," said Badr Jafar, Founder of the Pearl Initiative. "Through our partnership with the UN Global Compact, and events such as this Forum, we aim to raise this awareness amongst regional business leaders, and encourage more measures that will lead to greater levels of corporate accountability and transparency." Jafar added.
Designed to advance corporate sustainability and responsible business practices, thisone-day eventaims toenhance the role of the Private Sector in making progress towards regional competitiveness and the advancement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG's).
Georg Kell, Executive Director, United Nations Global Compact commented,"There have been significant steps taken in the region to usher in an era in which businesses are far more aware of their potential to impact their communities, and we are pleased to play a role in fostering greater understanding through our partnership with Pearl Initiative. As a regional business hub, Dubai and the UAE as a Country is the ideal location to host the first Pearl Initiative and United Nations Global Compact Forum in the Gulf Region."
The inaugural Forum will begin with a video address from the Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki Moon, and include keynote speeches and panel discussions from international and regional business leaders including Sir Mark Moody Stewart, President & Chairperson, Foundation for the UN Global Compact,Sheikha Hanadi AlThani, Vice Chairman of Nasser Bin Khaled AlThani & Sons Group, Mahmoud Al Kooheji, CEO, Mumtalakat andNasser Al Nowais, Chairman, Rotana Hotel Management Corporation.
The Forum will also mark the launch of Pearl Initiative's "Women's Careers in the GCC: The CEO Agenda". This extensiveresearch report, which polled more than 600 businesswomen across the GCC, aims to inform all business leaders aboutthe existing landscape of women in business in the region, and provide insights and recommendations for attracting, retaining and developing more women into senior company positions across the GCC. The key findings of the report will be revealed at the Forum.
"Supporting an event such as the Pearl Initiative and United Nations Global Compact Regional Forum not only demonstrates CCC's commitment to sound business principles but also raises awareness amongst the business community about the importance of corporate responsibility," said Samer Khoury, President, CCC.
The Forum's premium partners are Al Jomaih Group, Bank of Sharjah, Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC),Chalhoub Group,Construction Products Holding Company (CPC), Crescent Petroleum, Habtoor Leighton Group and Majid Al Futtaim, and the forum's venue partner is the Dubai World Trade Centre. For more information and to register for the Forum, please visit:http://www.pearlinitiative.org/
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About Pearl Initiative
The Pearl Initiative is the leading independent, not-for-profit, by-business for-business, organisation working across the Gulf Region of the Middle East to influence and improve corporate accountability and transparency.
Pearl Initiative is a regionally-focused growing network of business leaders committed to driving joint action, exhibiting positive leadership and sharing knowledge and experience in order to positively influence the entire regional business and student community towards implementing higher standards in areas such as governance in family firms, diversity in leadership teams, anti-corruption, integrity in the supply chain, corporate reporting and responsible investment.
Originally developed in cooperation with the United Nations Office for Partnerships in 2010, the Pearl Initiative and the United Nations Global Compact drive joint programmes in 2013, as part of their Strategic Partnership, in order to advance the adoption of the "Ten Principles" by the private sector within the Gulf region.
About The Global Compact
Launched in 2000, the United Nations Global Compact is both a policy platform and a practical framework for companies that are committed to sustainability and responsible business practices. As a multi-stakeholder leadership initiative, it seeks to align business operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and to catalyse actions in support of broader UN goals. With 8,000 corporate signatories and 4000 other stakeholders in over 160 countries, it is the world's largest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative.
www.unglobalcompact.org
For more information about Pearl Initiative
Claire Valdini
ASDA'A Burson-Marsteller
Tel: +971 (0) 4 4507 616
Email: claire.valdini@bm.com
© Press Release 2015
