According to Li Xiaoyu, a financial reporter at China News Network, the annual work conference of the Expert Committee of China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME) was recently held in Beijing. During the meeting, it was announced that the "Guidelines for Establishing ESG Framework (Standards) for China's Foreign Investment and Cooperation Enterprises" will be published in a timely manner in 2023, and a one-stop ESG service platform for foreign investment and cooperation enterprises will be established.
Zheng Chao, Executive Vice President of CCCME and Director of the Expert Committee, stated at the conference that Chinese enterprises are gradually becoming familiar with and attaching importance to ESG-related international standards and rules, and their integration speed and construction level are rapidly improving. However, faced with the numerous ESG evaluation rules and various evaluation indicators at home and abroad, enterprises generally reflect that their discourse power, participation, and response capabilities are insufficient.
Zheng Chao added that the Expert Committee will organize Chinese enterprises to conduct dialogues with international professional organizations in 2023, strengthen cooperation with international organizations and professional rating agencies such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in the fields of rating, certification, and consulting, and launch the "Guidelines for Establishing ESG Framework (Standards) for China's Foreign Investment and Cooperation Enterprises" at an appropriate time.
He stated that this will help effectively support enterprises in achieving sustainable development and help enterprises avoid the impact of ESG systems on foreign investment and cooperation.
Previously, the Expert Committee of CCCME had carried out related work on the standardization of ESG for foreign investment and cooperation.
ESG originated from the United Nations-promoted principles of responsible investment, with environmental protection, social responsibility, and corporate governance as its three major value pillars. In recent years, major countries and financial investment institutions around the world have developed and launched many reference standards and indicator systems for assessing the sustainable development capabilities of enterprises and project investment values based on the UN's ESG-related framework. The impact on Chinese enterprises has extended from engineering projects and overseas investment to the carbon footprint, carbon emissions, and resource consumption of enterprise production and operation.
It is understood that during the annual work conference, the Expert Committee awarded appointment letters to new committee members for 2022. Following the meeting, CCCME and the Joint Meeting of Overseas Chinese Enterprises (Associations) held the 24th lecture and the 10th Empowerment Training for Overseas Chambers of Commerce, with the theme of "Technological Empowerment of Carbon Neutrality and Green High-Quality Development". Professor He Kebin, Vice Chairman of CCCME, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and Dean of the School of Environment at Tsinghua University, gave a lecture on-site.