UN Global Compact

Embrace is supportive of the UN Global Compact.

The UNGC aims to improve the quality of life of citizens by working towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It has a wealth of resources and asks organisations to embrace, support and enact, within their sphere of influence, a set of core values in the areas of human rights, labour standards, the environment and anti-corruption.

This global initiative is a voluntary arrangement and is external to Kenya and therefore does not address the Constitution 2010, laws, culture, heritage or national priorities and challenges. It has an external, global perspective based on the 10 principles and 17 SDGs.

Embrace schemes and programme deliver specific, targeted objectives, whilst advancing the principles and selected goals and actions of the UNGC; in particular, SDGs 5,8,9,10,11 and 16.

A benefit to organisations that adopt the Embrace Schemes and programmes is that through participation they can demonstrate compliance with UNGC stipulations regarding the SDGs.

In confronting global challenges, especially the impact and effects of Covid-19, both public and private organisations need to be more resilient to deliver better social outcomes. It is widely accepted that organisations that practice enhanced CSR policy drive better business and higher financial performance than lower performers.

The UNGC proposes that an interconnected approach to resiliency embodied in the 17 SDGs is the way forward and that all organisations must define a new level of ambition to deliver the SDGs by 2030. In support of this, it is introducing the SDG Ambition Benchmarks, incorporating goal setting for the next decade. Adoption of the SDG Benchmarks requires goal setting that is more absolute, impact oriented and interconnected. It specifies examining the current business culture in relation to targets and how this in future can be ameliorated by goal setting.

For example, in the case of individual KPIs where specific topic targets are standalone, (e.g. gender mainstreaming) and are separate from business targets, the new approach will see an interconnected system of KPIs which are embedded throughout the business and tracked at the enterprise level.

This approach to interconnectivity, mainstreaming and entrenchment of targets is fundamental to all our programmes. Organisations that choose to work with us will reap benefits by witnessing that the outcomes of our intervention also help them on the road to meeting their SDG ambitions.