On 30 November 2021, the Foundation For International Human Rights Reporting Standards (FIHRRST) and Moores Rowland Indonesia, in cooperation with UNDP, held an event to launch the Study of the 2020 Sustainability Reports of Public Companies in Indonesia.
The event was opened by Marzuki Darusman, Chair of FIHRRST, who highlighted the importance of sustainability in advancing business and human rights in Indonesia. His speech was followed by opening remarks from Goklas Tambunan, Executive Vice President of the Indonesian Stock Exchange (IDX), who emphasized how ESG aspects are crucial for Indonesian companies to meet the demands of investors. Subsequently, Siprianus Bate Soro, the Assistant Resident Representative and Head of Democratic Governance and Poverty Reduction Unit at UNDP Indonesia, spoke on the importance of preparing sustainability reports to contribute to the achievement of goal no. 12 of the SDGs (to ensure sustainable consumption and production).
After the opening remarks, Bahtiar Manurung, Operations Director of FIHRRST, presented the results of the study. His presentation highlighted that only 16% of public companies in Indonesia published sustainability reports in 2020, and emphasized the need to disclose sustainability material topics that include GHG emissions and respect for human rights.
Next, Sean Lees, Business and Human Rights Specialist at UNDP Asia-Pacific, spoke on the state of business and human rights in Indonesia and the greater Southeast-Asia region. He explained three key priorities relating to trade and sustainability: linkages to human rights and the environment, sustainability reporting and ESG taxonomy, and climate change and lending.
Then, the organizers allowed companies to share their best practices relating to sustainability. The discussion was moderated by Satriyo Giri Saputra, Programme Coordinator for BHR and Sustainability. Leading companies that participated in the meeting include Indah Kiat Pulp and Paper, Bumi Resources, Unilever Indonesia, Bank BTPN, Bank CIMB Niaga. The discussion highlights the need for continuous improvement in sustainability reporting and practices.
After the discussion, an awarding ceremony was held to congratulate 15 companies with the best sustainability reports according to the study.
To close the event, James Kallman, CEO of Moores Rowland Indonesia, emphasized that companies must implement sustainability processes and practices in their operations to ensure their business continuity.
The recording of the launch event can be seen here
The complete study can be found here: bit.ly/studisr2020