Mauritius Industry Minister Sayyad Abd-Al-Cader Sayed Hossen said thatmanaging the growth of private companies with sustainability is a tough balancing act.
Speaking yesterday in the midst of 500-odd government executives and private industry representatives at the two-day CII Partnership Summit in Bangalore, India, the Mauritian minister pointed out that private companies are the engine of growth of an economy.
Even as Mauritius moves ahead with Maurice Ile Durable (MID) as the cornerstone of a green economy, it appears that the path to sustainable development is not smooth.
And, this is not true for the island economy alone, but is an issue facing all developing economies as they tread the tightrope between managing high growth rates for a teeming economy on one hand, and combating carbon emissions and other climate change issues on the other.
The issue of carbon emissions has been widely debated as developing economies have pointed out that that while they are in the growth phase, some flexibility must be granted to the industry within the overall carbon emissions framework.
However, the Deputy Chairman of India’s Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, was unrelenting in his attitude towards the corporate sector, flatly stating thatstringent targets must be imposed on companies regardless of their location.
Healso pointed out that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change has not progressed an ‘inch’ towards controlling climate change related issues as a result of rampant carbon emissions.
He also noted that it was “wishful thinking” to expect companies to adhere to issues regarding sustainability, cautioning thatthe target of 2 per cent increase in temperature in pre-industrial era is not acceptable anymore.
The solution, according to him, would be to have a target set to a specific number in comparison to the GDP of a country and overall target of reduction should be in the range of 20-25 per cent by 2020.
Held on the theme of ‘Partnerships for new shared realities’, Partnership Summit 2014 is the 20th such event organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). This year’s eventserved to highlight the investment opportunities emerging from rapid poverty alleviation in India and offered ideas for how a new class of consumers can become a new dynamic for growth.
Image (via Hindu Business Line): Sayyad Abd-Al-Cader Sayed Hossen (second from the left) also pointed out that private companies are the engine of growth of an economy.
Source: Hindu Business Line
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