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On 23 January 2004, Secretary-General Kofi Annan delivered a keynote address
at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. In his speech, the
Secretary-General highlighted the rapid growth of the Global Compact, which
today includes 1,200 companies from more than 70 countries, in addition to
dozens of civil society and labour organizations. While applauding
participating companies for their commitment to the Global Compact and its
principles, the Secretary-General urged more corporate leaders to step forward
and accept the Compact’s challenge – to help embed markets with universal values
in order to create a more sustainable and inclusive global
economy.
The Secretary-General also called on the private sector to
more actively align its business activities with the Millennium Development
Goals. He stated: “The Goals are intended, first and foremost, to
help people. But they can be good for business: first, because helping to
build the infrastructure is an enormous business opportunity; and second,
because, once it is built, business will find larger, eager markets in
place”.
Please click here to access the Secretary-General's
speech.
