Climate Change: LBS, Private Sector Leaders Pioneer Dialogue for Sustainable Development

Business Leaders and sector experts have called on the private sector, especially in Africa, to play their role in building resilient systems that will enable the achievement of sustainable development outcomes.

This was the focus at the annual LBS International Sustainability conference powered by the Lagos Business School Sustainability Centre (LBSSC) in partnership with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Africa), IHS Nigeria Limited and Shared Value Africa Initiative (SVAI) which held virtually on Friday, 18th November 2022.

The leaders outlined that the aftermath of climate change impacts and the COVID-19 pandemic has left many countries affected by risks and pressures which harm the population’s ability to survive. This has also exposed the vulnerability of current systems and structures which are incapable of coping, consequently endangering previously attained development gains.

Some of these risks include conflict and insecurity; economic shocks, extreme weather events, and climate change social impacts, which frequently cause food insecurity and mass displaced people; natural hazards, particularly floods and droughts; and communicable disease outbreaks and pandemics.

In her remarks at the conference, the Vice-Chancellor of Pan-Atlantic University and Board Member, of United Nations Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME), Prof. Enase, underscored the power of the private sector to innovate and move more quickly than the government.

“Our systems are failing us almost every day, and they are doing so faster than ever. We need to create new solutions. We need to create ways to ensure that we maintain and improve standards,” she emphasised.

To promote long-term transformation, Enase harped on the need for organisations to transcend a compliance-based culture for incorporating sustainability in their key operations to one of strategy and corporate purpose.

On the ways businesses can build resilient systems in Africa, the Group Company Secretary, Airtel Africa, Mr Simon O’Hara listed some of Airtel’s strategic programmes intertwined with the organisation’s vision and sustainability strategy.

According to him, the vision of Airtel Africa is about transforming lives and the organisation’s corporate strategy reflects this vision. Understanding the key role digital inclusion, financial inclusion and service equality plays in its vision, he noted that Airtel Africa has developed interventions to reach disadvantaged children and women with digital education and access to bandwidth to aid financial inclusion as part of its corporate strategy.

He conceded that the private sector is a significant backbone of any economic system, hence business leaders have to build sustainability and resilience as a desired outcome in addition to the traditional focus on profit within their operations first and for their stakeholders especially ‘people’.

The Chief Operating Officer of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), Mr Rodney Irwin argued that climate change is no longer a risk but a full-fledged reality and needs urgent action across sectors in rethinking their business models and energy needs.

During the panel discussion on “Practical Solutions in Systems Building in Food and Energy” the Senior Vice President of Power and Climate, Rockefeller Foundation, MrAshvin Dayal,  the Manager at Global Reporting Initiative, Tendai Matika, and the Managing Director, of Geometric Power Group, Agatha Nnaji hinted the importance of addressing climate change and building resilient businesses.

The private sector must recognise the enormous potential of renewable energy sources for sustainable development and develop solutions that are localised, decentralised, and tailored to suit and solve the issues of different economic and social settings.

IHS (Nigeria) Limited, one of the organisations taking action in this direction through their operations, presented a best-practice case study on their ‘Project Green’.

The company plans to prioritise solar hybrids, gas generators, lithium-ion batteries, supercap hybrids, and grid connectivity in the short term and expand grid connectivity, indoor-to-outdoor conversion, solar farms, and wind farms in the midterm and long term.

The conference, convened chief executives, directors, sustainability professionals and key stakeholders from around over 30 countries. Interactions at the virtual conference emphasised the importance of key stakeholders working together to promote resilient food and energy systems that support sustainable development especially in emerging and developing economies.

The International Sustainability Conference is an annual dialogue hosted by the Lagos Business School Sustainability Centre that aims to inspire business leaders to incorporate sustainability and responsible business practices into their strategy and operations, resulting in a positive impact not only on business performance but also on society.