Private sector and UN SDGs
Pakistan could become a global leader in achieving policy coherence in its foreign investment promotion
The writer has over 10 years of international development and impact investing experience. He is currently pursuing his PhD in Sustainability Management at the University of Waterloo
In his UNGA address last month, PM Imran Khan said, “How can poor countries meet the United Nations SDG’s [Sustainable Development Goals] when money for human development can easily leave our countries?”
But aside from the flight of capital to offshore accounts, there’s another problem with the SDGs. The world’s governments simply don’t have the financial resources to meet the targets. Prominent Cambridge scholar Emma Mawdsley writes that even if every donor country met the recommended 0.7% target of previous years, it would still only address a fraction of the annual $2.5-6 trillion needed to achieve the SDGs. It is becoming clear that we must involve the private sector closely on the SDG agenda.
My personal experiences as an international development professional focusing on “blended partnerships” between public, private and civil society has shown me that Pakistan is ripe for private-sector partnerships to achieve the SDGs. However, the government needs to incentivise and facilitate the private sector and foreign investors to build partnerships that don’t just focus on financial objectives but development impact as well.
Representing an overseas development agency, I remember visiting the CEO of a large meat company in Karachi to propose a co-investment model to establish community goat farms in rural Sindh. The gentleman had several computer-monitors and seemed disinterested at my arrival. He had a religious beard and traditional dress which gave me the impression that his views might be conservative in nature. For a second, I doubted how he would react to my proposal.
I finished explaining our project mandate, how we had visited the field and seen vast potential to establish cooperative goat farms to build the livelihoods for the poorest of the poor, especially women. He stared into my eyes without expression or emotion. There was silence as I struggled to decipher what his feelings were when he uttered, “Why not?”
He went on to explain how he couldn’t say no to an organisation coming from overseas to invest in his country, to help the poor in his business supply chain. There could be no better proposition for his business and social interests and he would be happy to contribute $0.5 million for the initiative. Following a one-hour discussion, we signed an MoU.
Numerous interactions like this have solidified my belief that, not only does the private sector in Pakistan have the capital necessary to make a significant contribution to achieving our SDG targets, but that thousands of socially-minded business leaders are waiting to be approached with “shared value” propositions which help their business while contributing to the triple-bottom-line of people, planet and prosperity.
Engagement with foreign investors makes this case all the more compelling for local business leaders as they view this as a complete package — investment, technical assistance as well as the prestige-factor which comes with collaborating with foreign investors.
So what role does the government have in facilitating these shared-value relationships with the private sector and foreign investors? My preliminary research at the University of Waterloo is showing me that policy coherence is needed to achieve development and SDG targets the government has set for itself.
We should be incentivising foreign investors to invest in “pro-poor” business inclusive initiatives that create win-win situations for businesses and low-income communities. Tax-based incentives and concessional capital can be offered by the government to attract these “impact investments” which will contribute to development objectives and SDG targets.
Pakistan could become a global leader in achieving policy coherence in its foreign investment promotion and development policies as we have all the ingredients needed.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 30th, 2019.
But aside from the flight of capital to offshore accounts, there’s another problem with the SDGs. The world’s governments simply don’t have the financial resources to meet the targets. Prominent Cambridge scholar Emma Mawdsley writes that even if every donor country met the recommended 0.7% target of previous years, it would still only address a fraction of the annual $2.5-6 trillion needed to achieve the SDGs. It is becoming clear that we must involve the private sector closely on the SDG agenda.
My personal experiences as an international development professional focusing on “blended partnerships” between public, private and civil society has shown me that Pakistan is ripe for private-sector partnerships to achieve the SDGs. However, the government needs to incentivise and facilitate the private sector and foreign investors to build partnerships that don’t just focus on financial objectives but development impact as well.
Representing an overseas development agency, I remember visiting the CEO of a large meat company in Karachi to propose a co-investment model to establish community goat farms in rural Sindh. The gentleman had several computer-monitors and seemed disinterested at my arrival. He had a religious beard and traditional dress which gave me the impression that his views might be conservative in nature. For a second, I doubted how he would react to my proposal.
I finished explaining our project mandate, how we had visited the field and seen vast potential to establish cooperative goat farms to build the livelihoods for the poorest of the poor, especially women. He stared into my eyes without expression or emotion. There was silence as I struggled to decipher what his feelings were when he uttered, “Why not?”
He went on to explain how he couldn’t say no to an organisation coming from overseas to invest in his country, to help the poor in his business supply chain. There could be no better proposition for his business and social interests and he would be happy to contribute $0.5 million for the initiative. Following a one-hour discussion, we signed an MoU.
Numerous interactions like this have solidified my belief that, not only does the private sector in Pakistan have the capital necessary to make a significant contribution to achieving our SDG targets, but that thousands of socially-minded business leaders are waiting to be approached with “shared value” propositions which help their business while contributing to the triple-bottom-line of people, planet and prosperity.
Engagement with foreign investors makes this case all the more compelling for local business leaders as they view this as a complete package — investment, technical assistance as well as the prestige-factor which comes with collaborating with foreign investors.
So what role does the government have in facilitating these shared-value relationships with the private sector and foreign investors? My preliminary research at the University of Waterloo is showing me that policy coherence is needed to achieve development and SDG targets the government has set for itself.
We should be incentivising foreign investors to invest in “pro-poor” business inclusive initiatives that create win-win situations for businesses and low-income communities. Tax-based incentives and concessional capital can be offered by the government to attract these “impact investments” which will contribute to development objectives and SDG targets.
Pakistan could become a global leader in achieving policy coherence in its foreign investment promotion and development policies as we have all the ingredients needed.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 30th, 2019.