‘Pact Will Bring Benefits to Firms’
By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter
Leaders of companies and civic groups here held an inaugural meeting last Monday for a Korea network to back up the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), a voluntary initiative for the practice of corporate responsibility.
Ju Chul-ki, 61, national coordinator of the UNGC Korea Network, is trying to encourage more local firms to join the compact, saying it will ultimately bring them benefits.
``Some entrepreneurs hesitate to join the compact because its principles on labor standards and human rights may trigger trouble with management,'' Ju, the former South Korean ambassador to France and Morocco, told The Korea Times in an interview. ``In the long term, however, participation will bring benefits.''
By adopting the compact, local firms can lay the basic groundwork to leap into the global market, he said.
``Anti-corruption and transparent management campaigning are mega trends. Companies can show they are leading these by joining,'' he said.
Besides, firms can give the impressions that they are putting importance on improving environmental issues to which international society is paying attention because the global agreement includes principles related to the environment.
The UNGC stresses communication among participants, so it has about 40 networks.
Companies can expect to share experience and knowledge with foreign businesses through those established networks, Ju said.
It provides participants with another opportunity to communicate with society, he added.
The coordinator said participation in the compact can give positive effects to both employees and stockholders.
``Investment analysts, nowadays, tend to give more scores to companies which are making efforts for transparent management,'' he said. ``As a result, compact participants can achieve raised values, which will give satisfaction to shareholders and raise workers' self-esteem.''
Those effects will bring benefits to nations and the whole world, he aded.
Some firms still express worries that the compact may bring problems but the important and good thing about it is that the 10 principles are not compulsory, Ju said. ``It is all voluntary. The only thing that the global compact require participants to do is to submit a report on their efforts to implement the principles biennially.''
The UNGC is less known to the public than other U.N. agencies because it is a comparatively new organization launched in 2000.
It is the core mission for the Korea Network to raise awareness on the global compact, Ju said.
``We are considering holding events related to it and offering educational programs to the public,'' he said. ``We also expect more female entrepreneurs to participate in the transparency campaign.''
The UNGC Korea Network plans to hold a general assembly by September to discuss ways to boost participation of firms and civic organizations.
Ju and other members of the network are scheduled to attend the annual UNGC Global Network Forum slated for Oct. 17 in Monterrey, Mexico. ``I hope more companies and organizations will join the Global Pact, which will bring mutual benefits,'' Ju said.