Social Good Peru amplifies the #2030Now Conversation

By Social Good Peru Leader Jose Arrieta

A few days before the events of the 73rd UN General Assembly took place, the Social Good chapter of Peru organized our own Social Good Summit for 2018. The event focused on exploring the necessary actions in order for government, private sector, academia and civil society to join efforts to move our country forward and reach the 2030 Agenda.

Of the 193 member countries of the United Nations that have committed themselves to the Sustainable Development Goals, Peru is ranked 64th according to the compliance report prepared by Bertelsmann Stiftung and the Sustainable Development Solutions Network. Countries such as Bolivia, Kazakhstan and Suriname follow close behind.

Poverty, child labor, and mass hunger are the main problems that Peru is currently facing. The poverty rate in Peru is very concerning. In a country of 30 million inhabitants, almost 8 million live in poverty and at least three million are in extreme poverty; those most affected are the indigenous and rural populations.

Child labor in Peru has increased in recent decades. Many children and young people drop out of school in order to work. According to the National Institute of Statistics and Informatics (INEI), 23.4% of 7 million Peruvian children and adolescents between ages 6 and 17 work to support themselves or their families.

Another social problem Peru faces is mass hunger. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the total number of people suffering from hunger in Peru reached 2.5 million.

The goal of the Social Good Summit Peru was to bring together young leaders, organizations, companies, and government entities to discuss how to improve our country and take action to achieve the SDGs by 2030.

The event addressed the axis of sustainable development, corporate social responsibility, and the progress/implementation SDGs in Peru.

On Monday, September 17, the country celebrated the Social Good Summit of Peru 2018 in the auditorium of the University of Lima. The event was held previously at the 7th PRME (Principles for Responsible Management Education) Regional Meeting of Latin America and the Caribbean. PRME is an initiative of the UN Global Compact working with the top business schools in the world.

Corresponsables — a leading Ibero-American communication company in Social Responsibility and Sustainability that is present in countries such as Spain, Peru, Mexico, Argentina, and Ecuador, has considered the Social Good Summit Peru as one of the most important appointments of the Corporate Social Responsibility agenda in Lima.

The event brought together authorities and representatives from the Ministry of Environment, CONFIEP, PROMPERÚ, the Tech Institute of Production of the Ministry of Production, the UN Global Compact Red Peru, Coca-Cola, Entel, the BBVA Continental Foundation, Corresponsables, Lee Hecht Harrison — DBM, Backus, X-Runner Venture, Social Good Peru and the University of Lima.

The speakers were: Fabiola Muñoz, Minister of the Environment; Patricia Stuart, Dean of the faculty of business and economic sciences of the University of Lima; Jose Luis Altamiza, National Coordinator of UN Global Compact Red Peru and Manager of regions and small business of the CONFIEP; Mariella Soldi, Sub Director of the Country Brand in PROMPERÚ; Gonzalo Villarán, Executive Director of the Technological Institute of Production of the Ministry of Production; Ines Temple, Executive President of LHH — DBM Peru and Chairman of the Board of LHH Chile; Dante Melgar, Director of Corresponsables; Jose Arrieta, Social Good Peru Chapter Leader; Sandra Alencastre, Director of Public Affairs and Communications at Coca Cola; Manuel Silva, External Communication and Sustainability Manager of Backus; Carlo Reyes, Manager of the BBVA Continental Foundation; Rosa Bonilla, Head of Institutional Relations and Sustainability of Entel; and Raúl Briceño, General Manager of X-Runner Venture.

The Minister of the Environment said “The Social Good Summit Peru 2018 is a great opportunity to reflect and discuss the opportunities we have to collaborate and build on the agenda that both the country and the world need to achieve our goals by 2030. I am certain everyone anywhere has the opportunity to make a change. From the decision to buy bread in a cloth bag instead of a plastic bag, to the design of how we reuse water in a mining project, everyone has the opportunity to contribute and achieve the goals we have as a whole by 2030.”

A look at the future

The mission of Social Good Peru is to promote sustainable development in our country, and align our actions with the 2030 Agenda through alliances with government, private sector, academia, and civil society. Our goal is to share the same vision for a better world in 2030.

In the coming months we will create spaces so that young people can learn to lead initiatives, take action, and emerge as agents of change and drivers of the 2030 Agenda.

We strongly believe that the empowerment and participation of young people are a means to build a better world. Young people are an important asset in dealing with the problems that affect the world. To achieve the 2030 Agenda in our country, we need the commitment and action of all the youth to make it happen. The way they can contribute is to create awareness of the SDGs in their communities, in their social networks, and in leading their own initiatives.

Currently, Social Good Peru has built a community of young people under the age of 30 from important universities in Peru with a desire to be changemakers.

SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

Social Good Peru focuses on SDG 17 (Partnerships for the SDGs). It is important to highlight the support of each company and institution who supported the organization of the event.

The Social Good Summit Meetup 2018 in Peru was organized by Social Good Peru in partnership with the University of Lima, CONFIEP, UN Global Compact Red Peru, PROMPERU, Ministry of Environment, AIESEC, Belcorp, Entel, Gestión, Stakeholders, Corresponsables.

• CONFIEP (National Confederation of Private Business Institutions) is the institution that represents the business activity in Peru at the national and international level. This organization brings together the Peruvian business association.
• University of Lima: One of the top universities in Peru.
• United Nations Global Compact Red Peru: The Global Compact is an initiative of the United Nations launched during the World Economic Forum in Davos in 1999, in which companies are invited to adopt corporate citizenship based on principles of action on labor issues, human rights, environment and fight against corruption. In November 2003, CONFIEP and the United Nations System officially launched the Global Compact in Peru. In 2005, CONFIEP assumed the Technical Secretariat of this network.
• PROMPERÚ: Public Body attached to the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (MINCETUR, by its initials in Spanish) in charge of the promotion of Peru in terms of exports, tourism and image.
• Ministry of the Environment: It is the agency of the Peruvian government whose mission is to ensure sustainable use, conservation of natural resources and environmental quality for the benefit of people and the environment in a normative, effective, decentralized and articulated manner with public and private organizations and society. Civil society, in the framework of green growth and environmental governance.
• AIESEC: A global platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential.
• Belcorp: A peruvian company that currently has a presence in 14 countries in Latin America and in the USA. The founder is Eduardo Belmont, considered by Forbes magazine one of the richest in Peru.
• Entel: A telecommunications company founded in Chile with a presence in Peru. Entel is an integrated provider of telecommunications and IT services aimed at the People, Companies and Corporations markets.
• Gestión: One of the main business magazines in Peru that is part of the El Comercio Group.
• Stakeholders: A means of communication and consultation that disseminates the initiatives and advances of Social Responsibility both in Peru and throughout the world.
• Corresponsables: An Ibero-American communication company about Social Responsibility and Sustainability. Present in countries such as Spain, Peru, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Chile and Ecuador.