The Pakistan Business Council (PBC) is pleased to announce the formation of the Centre of Excellence in Responsible Business (CERB). CERB will have the vision to assist businesses in Pakistan to pursue long term sustainability and value creation, with the mission to contribute towards inclusive social, environmental and economic development.
As its strategic objectives CERB will engage with businesses and industry leaders to provide a clear direction towards conducting responsible business in Pakistan. It will leverage private sector growth as a means for development and poverty reduction by following the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) framework. CERB will comprise of two interdependent units:
-- Inclusive and Sustainable Development Forum focusing on generating livelihoods, promoting women's empowerment and decoupling growth from impact on the environment;
-- Ethics, Values and Governance Forum to promote responsible practices which strengthen the formal sector in pursuit of sustainable value creation.
PBC is also pleased to announce that Fuad Hashimi will lead CERB as its Executive Director. Hashimi brings many years of valuable experience. Through leadership of the Pakistan Institute of Corporate Governance from 2007 till recently, he played a key role to further corporate governance practices in Pakistan. His career over the past 49 years has provided him with a strong foundation in accounting and auditing (he was a partner for 10 years in A F Ferguson & Co) as well as management of diversified business and commercial ventures, in Pakistan and abroad, ranging from banking, office automation and information technology to mutual funds. Hashimi is a regular participant, moderator and speaker at OECD's Network on Corporate Governance of State Owned-Enterprises in Asia and at OECD's Asian Roundtable on Corporate Governance. He is a member of the Private Sector Advisory Group of International Finance Corporation, World Bank Group.
Pakistan Business Council is Pakistan's pre-eminent think tank and business advocacy body composed of businesses that have a substantial investment and long term commitment to growth in and of Pakistan. Its members represent 10 percent of GDP and nearly every fifth rupee of tax revenue and annual exports. Together the members directly employ 300,000 people, with millions more in the extended value chain. PBC works closely with relevant government ministries, regulators and others through evidence based representations with the objective of strategic, medium to long term transformation of the business environment. The key rationale of PBC's foundation in 2005 was to move beyond the narrow single-industry focus of trade bodies and often tactical orientation of the chambers. In the next stage of its evolution, PBC will leverage the strength of its members to reach out to and help develop capacity and capability of medium-sized businesses to world class.
Commenting on the development Atif Bajwa, Chairman of PBC and President of Bank Alfalah said "As the pre-eminent body of leading businesses in Pakistan, PBC sees as one of its objectives, the need to uplift medium-sized enterprises of today to world class businesses of tomorrow. In the process we would not only promote employment, exports and the image of "Pakistan Inc," but also expand the eco-system of responsible businesses and thus strengthen the formal sector."
Ehsan Malik, CEO of PBC added: "In the long run, you can't have thriving businesses in failing communities and environment. It is directly in the interest of large businesses which compose PBC's membership, to take the lead to put the entire value chain on a sustainable footing. This must start with values and behaviours and lead to inclusive and environmentally sustainable actions. Generating livelihoods to alleviate poverty, women's empowerment and managing the carbon footprint are responsibilities that must be owned by everyone." For more information on PBC please visit www.pbc.org.pk.-PR