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More than 20,000 leaders from business, government, the UN, and civil society will gather for the UN’s largest corporate sustainability event to elevate ambition for strategic collective action to get back on track after the pandemic and rebuild a just, equitable and resilient society.

WHAT: United Nations Global Compact Leaders Summit 2021

WHEN: 15-16 June 2021

WHERE: Virtual Summit (registration details below)

UNITED NATIONS, New York, 15 June 2021 — The United Nations Global Compact Leaders Summit on 15-16 June will convene Heads of State, CEOs of major corporations and UN leaders to address the converging global crises of climate change, the Covid-19 global pandemic, worsening social and economic inequality and unchecked corruption in order to offer a roadmap for a sustainable recovery.

Confirmed speakers include the President of Singapore, H.E. Halimah Yacob; Prime Minister of Jamaica, H.E. Andrew Holness, Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea, H.E. Kim Boo-kyum; UN Secretary-General António Guterres; UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed; President of COP26, Alok Sharma; the UK’s High-Level Climate Champion Nigel Topping; Inger Andersen, Executive Director, UNEP; Michelle Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights; Sharan Burrow, Secretary General of the International Trade Union Confederation and Sanda Ojiambo, CEO & Executive Director of the UN Global Compact.

More than two dozen CEOs will speak including Julie Sweet, CEO, Accenture; Roberto Marques, CEO, Natura &Co; Suphachai Chearavanont, CEO, Charoen Pokphand Group; Jean-Pascale Tricoire, CEO, Schneider Electric, Francesco Starace, CEO, Enel and Keith Anderson, CEO, Scottish Power.

Over 26 hours of continuous virtual programming, speakers and guests from 69 Global Compact Local Networks will discuss responsible business practices through the lens of pressing issues such as the state of sustainability; credible climate action; tackling corruption through collective action; decent work and ensuring living wages; accelerating women’s leadership and bringing innovative sustainable investment instruments to market.

The UN Global Compact Network Sri Lanka will be co-hosting three sessions. The first session, Network Sri Lanka has joined forces with Networks Mexico, United Kingdom and Turkey to host the “Responsible Business: Diversity & Inclusion in the Workplace” on the 15th June 2021 at 10.45pm to 11.30pm (IST) featuring Ms. Sharmila Sherikar, Senior Vice President – Talent Management Head – Americas Business, Virtusa.

Additionally, the second session, Network Sri Lanka will host the session titled “Sustainable Manufacturing for an Equitable Future” at the Virtual Leaders Summit, on the 16^th of June 2021 from 8.15am to 9.00am (IST). Sri Lanka, as one of the fastest growing markets in the world, possesses abundant opportunities and fascinating approaches to cross-cutting the Sustainable Development Goals. Sustainable Manufacturing seeks to replace an unsustainable economic development model with socially and environmentally responsible practices that consume minimal resources. Sustainable Manufacturing involves total life-cycle considerations when developing products which are both economically sound and socially beneficial.

The panelists for the Sri Lanka Network session are as follows: Dilhan Fernando - CEO of Dilmah Tea and Chairman of the UN Global Compact Network Sri Lanka, Hajar Alafifi – Chairperson and Managing Director, Unilever Sri Lanka, Dr. Rohan Fernando – Managing Director, Aitken Spence Plantations Managements PLC and Executive Director, Aitken Spence PLC, Shakthi Ranatunga – Chief Operations Officer, MAS Holdings; Rajitha Kariyawasam - Managing Director, Haycarb PLC & Eco Solutions and Deputy Chairman, Dipped Products PLC (Hayleys Group)

Furthermore, for the third session, Network Sri Lanka has partnered with Networks Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan to host “Towards Economic Prosperity: Perspectives from South Asia” on the 16th June 2021 at 9.30am to 10.30am featuring Mr. Krishan Balendra, Chairman – John Keells Holdings

Other high-level Summit speakers include comedian and producer Larry Whitmore; Manish Bapta, Interim President and CEO, World Resources Institute; Can Çaka, CEO, Anadolu Efes; Li Zhenguo, Founder & President, LONGi Green Energy Technology Co; Marjorie Yang, Chairman and CEO, Esquel Group; Victoria Yarmoshchuku, CEO and Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation.

About the UN Global Compact

As a special initiative of the UN Secretary-General, the United Nations Global Compact is a call to companies everywhere to align their operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and to take action in support of UN goals. The UN Global Compact Network Sri Lanka was launched in 2011, and presently consists of 44 participant and signatory level members.

Media Accreditation: Media coverage is welcome. For the full programme and to register to attend please visit https://na.eventscloud.com/website/23790/media-centre/

Media inquiries and questions: Please contact Alex Gee +447887 804594 alex@mackworthassociates.com media@unglobalcompact.com