Inclusive and Sustainable Business What is Inclusive and Sustainable Business? Today’s business community operates in a globalized economy. Inter-connected issues such as gender equality, job creation, climate change, and corruption are increasingly impacting business operations all over the world. The World Bank Group strategy calls for building an inclusive and sustainable globalization through overcoming poverty, enhancing growth with care for the environment, and creating individual opportunity. We help businesses and organizations working in emerging markets to recognize the crucial linkages between corporate strategy and development, and implement new and innovative business models and sustainable corporate strategies that fight poverty while delivering profits. Current Initiatives (descriptions below) Training Program on Corporate Social and Environmental Responsibility and Competitiveness - Mercosur Multi-Sectoral Partnership with Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition: Business Action to Combat Malnutrition - Global Improving Competitiveness and SME Sustainability - Managing Environmental and Social Impacts of Local Companies - Africa Business Partnership on HIV/AIDS and Social Response - Africa Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainable and Inclusive Business in the Arab World - Egypt HIV/AIDS, Stigma and Inclusive and Sustainable Development within the Private Sector - India Private Sector Partnership on Inclusive and Sustainable Development - India
Executive Development Programs www.worldbank.org/wbi/edp These programs are designed to help firms and organizations working in emerging markets to recognize the crucial linkages between corporate strategy and development. The program provides tools to develop and implement sustainable corporate strategies that fight poverty while delivering profits. Current and upcoming programs Inclusive and Sustainable Business:Creating Markets with the Poor Inclusive and Sustainable Business: Agribusiness: Integrating the Poor along the Food Chain Customized versions of the program tailored to specific regions and sectors will be offered in the coming year. Learn about our Executive Development Programs Research and Publications Business and Poverty--Opening Markets to the Poor, Development Outreach Corporate Response to HIV/AIDS -- Case Studies from India Online Courses Corporate Social Responsibility Course This course introduces participants to the theory and practice behind corporate responsibility and competitiveness. The online course has already been taken by 20,000 participants from over 90 countries, and is now available in English, Portuguese, Arabic and Spanish. Current Initiatives (descriptions) Business Action to Combat Malnutrition In partnership with World Bank Human Development (WB HD) and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), this program engages the private sector in the fight against malnutrition, targeting increased access to affordable fortified foods for poor populations. WBI supports the capacity development of the private sector to take action for improved nutrition, notably through innovative viable business models. WBI leads development of knowledge products, dialogues and trainings, which also complement WB HD operational projects and GAIN programming. East AfricaRegion—Capacity Development for Improving Competitiveness and SME Sustainability The main objectives of the program are to strengthen the capacity of business organizations and local companies in the East Africa region to more effectively manage environmental and social impacts through appropriate management and reporting structures in their workplace and community, and to improve and better market their environmental and social performance (for example, quality of work conditions and inclusion of vulnerable groups). It also builds on World Bank-wide efforts to strengthen environmental and social sustainability. Business Partnership on HIV/AIDS and Social Response This program began in 2005 in Ethiopia, and complements the Multisectoral HIV/AIDS Program of World Bank operations in the Africa Region. The program, now being extended to the East Africa region, supports the strengthening of the Pan-African Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS and National Business Coalitions on HIV/AIDS by continuing to build on the successes and good practice experiences of WBI’s program in Ethiopia. The overall objectives are to strengthen private sector partnership in the national multi-sectoral responses to HIV/AIDS and the capacity of the private sector to effectively manage HIV/AIDS, its impacts and social responsibilities through the achievement of results in workplace and community program development. The program is delivered in close coordination with ActAfrica, the CMUs, World Bank and IFC against AIDS counterparts, and GTZ. Mercosur Region—Corporate Responsibility In a partnership with InWEnt, Capacity Building International, Germany, this program aims at building the capacity of local private sector companies on corporate responsibility and sustainability issues and at fostering a network of trained CSR practitioners in the Mercosur region. Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainable and Inclusive Business in the Arab World This program aims to build the capacity of the Egyptian Institute of Directors (EIoD) and its partners to further disseminate corporate social responsibility (CSR) awareness-raising and support to local and regional countries. This project will be scaled up beyond Egypt to the broader MNA region, responding to demand from organizations in Dubai, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia for CSR programming and executive training on sustainable and inclusive business, and linking CSR, corporate governance, philanthropy and competitiveness. Specifically designed training programs in Arabic and English will be used for these capacity-building projects. India—HIV/AIDS, Stigma and Inclusive and Sustainable Development within the Private Sector This program began in 2006 and is anchored in the CAS, complementing World Bank operations and analytical work in India including support to AIDS III and NACP III, as well as regional work on stigma reduction. Based on requests from local partners to address HIV/AIDS and stigma in the wider development context, the program will also build on WBI priorities for work on inclusive and sustainable business development. The program will continue to strengthen the response of the business community to HIV/AIDS, stigma, and inclusive development. The program will be delivered in close coordination with Indian companies, the Confederation of Indian Industry, the Energy and Resources Institute, CMU, SAR AIDS and SASFP. |
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