BANGKOK, June 28, 2023 – The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) and partners jointly organized the 2nd “SET Sustainability Forum: From Sustainability Ambitions ?to Action” on Wednesday, June 28, 2023. In the event, executives from leading local and international organizations were invited to share roles of organization leaders in driving sustainable visions into tangible practices. This is aimed at enhancing competitiveness, expanding business growth opportunities amidst the current challenging factors faced by all sectors.
SET President Pakorn Peetathawatchai said businesses are currently surrounded by challenges especially environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. They have to cope with stricter business regulations such as the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) imposed by the European Union, and the Bank of Thailand’s policy on loan scrutiny by taking into account environmental aspect which will take effect in the third quarter of 2023. These compel businesses to adapt to changes, manage risks, and seek new opportunities. However, the adaptation cannot be achieved by the leader alone. The entire organization needs to move forward together, starting with organizational leaders setting directions and sustainable visions that deploy to management teams. Every employee must be involved in driving these efforts, and ultimately, ESG should be integrated into the DNA and culture of the organization.
Energy Absolute pcl Chief Executive Officer Somphote Ahunai shared his experiences as the leader managing a business in the midst of drastic and abrupt changes. “Business and sustainability can be driven on the same path. Leaders of organizations must find out how “planetary stewardship” and “money making” go hand-in-hand, and navigate change to make differences, enhance competitiveness, and drive policies and strategies which enable everyone in their organizations to share and move towards the same goals. We, therefore, will be the business that helps preserve the environment for sustainable growth,” Somphote said.
Asian Alliance International pcl Chief Financial Officer Varanrath Assanupong exchanged her perspectives and experiences from playing important roles in pushing sustainability into practices in her organization. “Today, sustainability is recognized as a key element of organizations. As for sustainability, E, S and G concern many matters that are crucial to business opportunities and good returns in the long run. ESG data significantly helps prioritize the issues that affect organizations. In the near future, importance of ESG data will be on par with financial data and both kinds of data will be connected. So, CFOs’ roles on ESG will be unavoidable,” said Varanrath.
Government Pension Fund (GPF) Secretary General Srikanya Yathip shared knowledge, experience, and investment strategies for the future of the GPF as an institutional investor that places importance on promoting and driving sustainable investment in Thailand. “The trend of sustainable investment is growing rapidly, resulting in a tremendous flow of funds into ESG-focused investments. GPF is aware of its roles as a ‘universal owner’. Therefore, GPF has established policy frameworks and guidelines that support the integration of ESG factors and has enhanced positive engagement processes to promote and stimulate collaboration among stakeholders in elevating ESG practices. This will be key mechanisms to promote responsible and sustainable investment.”
SET aims to support all parties to always be aware of the importance of and embed social and environmental responsibility into operations, be comprehensively considerate towards all stakeholders and comply with corporate governance. SET focuses on developing ecosystems for sustainable business, building knowledge and understanding and creating relevant tools to support business sector such as the ESG Data Platform to make listed companies’ ESG data accessible to investors. SET also gathers the personnel whose work concerns sustainability in the capital market (SET ESG Experts Pool) to drive the wide-scope ESG development . Interested parties can watch back the “SET Sustainability Forum 2/2023 : From Sustainability Ambitions ?to Action” through SET Thailand’s online channels : Facebook and YouTube.
