Sustainable Development Goals Broadening the horizon for India’s growth and transformation

Global CompactNetwork India

The 11th National Convention of the Global Compact Network India (GCNI) comes at an opportune time – a time when nations across the globe are coming together to collaborate and identify ways to achieve sustainable growth while creating positive impact for the society at large. With almost a sixth of the world’s population and as an emerging super power, India is uniquely positioned to contribute towards this global sustainable growth agenda. However, there are a number of challenges which we need to overcome to achieve sustainable growth. There is a continuous need to identify innovative ways to address challenges related to poverty, hunger, ecological imbalances and resource shortages.

Given the diverse nature of challenges in the way of sustainable growth, there is a need for a holistic framework which stakeholders can leverage to shape and drive their growth agenda. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) introduced by the United Nations and formally adopted by 193 member nations in 2015 provide such a holistic framework. These 17 goals are expected to set the world’s development agenda until 2030. In this context, the importance of Global Compact anchoring this convention around the SDGs cannot be over-emphasized.

As we move ahead with our growth story, it is important for us to embrace the SDG framework to shape our transformation journey. The first step in this direction is to understand what the SDG framework is all about. That’s where I believe this report can be immensely helpful for stakeholders such as government, departments such as NITI Aayog, businesses, NGOs, institutional players, academia as well as citizens. The report not only demystifies

Foreword

the SDG framework, but also provides a deep-dive view of aspects such as how India is performing on each SDG currently, illustrative policies to help drive implementation of SDGs in India, case studies to illustrate how private sector can help accelerate adoption of SDGs etc. I genuinely believe that the insights captured in this report can help different stakeholders seamlessly understand and adopt the SDG framework.

I would like to congratulate Global Compact Network India and its knowledge partner Accenture Strategy for creating this awareness report on SDGs. We are hopeful that this report will pave the way forward for India to continue its march towards sustainable growth and inclusive development through low carbon pathways.

(Dinesh K Sarraf)Chairman & Managing Director,Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – a holistic framework to shape global transformation

Figure 1: United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals

“We are living in times when there is a felt urgency among India’s industry players to execute rigorous actions in the path of sustainable development. SDGs have helped define a direction to channel such action, where business can work towards employment creation, low carbon business practices, and plough growth into sustained development practices based on lasting partnerships.”

Lalit Kumar GuptaManaging Director & CEO, Essar Oil Limited

In September 2000, various global leaders assembled at the United Nations’ Millennium Summit and committed their nations to support 8 development goals. These goals, better known as Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), were intended to address acute human challenges such as poverty and hunger, while also promoting other basic needs such as right to education, gender equality and environmental sustainability. In addition to adopting MDGs, global leaders also identified specific time-bound targets and indicators, which were expected to shape the world’s development agenda for the period 2000 – 2015.

India has come a long way in embracing MDGs and has made significant progress on a number of goals, such as halving poverty rates from 1990 levels, ensuring gender parity in primary school enrolment, reversing incidence of HIV/AIDS, and reducing malaria and TB related deaths. However, there still are areas such as hunger, child mortality and gender equality in employment, where there is a significant opportunity for improvement. Likewise, a majority of nations managed to make progress on a few goals, with further improvement opportunities in other areas. This paved way for the development of SDGs. 1

SDGs are the new set of transformative and universal development goals SDGs were conceptualized at the UN Sustainable Development Conference in Rio de Janerio in June, 2012. These goals were intended to carry forward the initial momentum built by MDGs, with a relatively expanded scope of development. In particular, SDGs are a set of 17 goals with 169 underlying targets and 304 indicators. These goals were formally adopted by 193 member nations of the UN in September 2015 and are expected to set the world’s development agenda for 2015 – 2030. 2

The Government of India has already demonstrated its commitment to SDGs through rollout of initiatives such as “SabkaSath, SabkaVikas” (Together with All, Development for All). The Government has also clearly stated that the first claim on development belongs to the poor. Improved sanitation, health, education, financial inclusion, security and gender equality are some of the key goals that the government plans to focus on. Moreover, the budget for 2016 has also been framed in alignment with the broad objectives laid out by SDGs.

“While the health impacts of climate change are global, it’s imperative that India, accountable for 1/7th of the global population, acts fervently to save our planet’s future. Sanofi, an official partner of COP21, is working on awareness efforts through partnerships and solutions to prevent and respond to diseases like dengue or malaria that are indirect health impacts resulting from climate change. Additionally, across all our industrial and R&D sites, we aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20% between 2010 and 2020.”

Shailesh AyyangarManaging Director – Sanofi India LimitedVice President – South Asia, Sanofi

While SDGs are often perceived as an extension and evolution of MDGs, there are some fundamental differences in the way SDGs have been rolled out:

•SDGs are all-inclusive: SDGs are all-encompassing and all countries are expected to work towards the implementation of global goals and achieving underlying targets.

•SDGs target complete elimination of fundamental challenges: While MDGs were designed to initiate progress, SDGs are designed to achieve a statistical “zero” on challenges such as hunger, poverty, preventable child deaths and other targets.

• SDGs recognize the critical role of partnerships for successful implementation: SDGs have been designed to rely on partnerships and collaborations for successful implementation. In particular, SDGs recognize the critical role that businesses must play in achieving them.

Figure 2: SDGs – Broad objectives

“End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture”

Promoting sustainable agricultural practices, improving livelihoods and capacities of small scale famers* allowing equal access to land, technology and markets.

“Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all”

Committing to end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other communicable diseases by 2030. Achieving universal health coverage, and provide access to safe and effective medicines and vaccines for all.

“Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”

Ensuring that all children complete free primary and secondary schooling by 2030. Providing equal access to affordable vocational training, and to eliminate gender and wealth disparities.

“End poverty in all its forms and everywhere”

Targeting those living in vulnerable situations, increasing access to basic resources and services, and supporting communities affected by conflict and climate-related disasters.

“Reduce inequality within and among countries”

Improving the regulation and monitoring of financial markets and institutions, encouraging development assistance and foreign direct investment to regions where the need is greatest. Facilitating the safe migration and mobility of people is also key to bridging the widening divide.

“Make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable”

Making cities safe and sustainable, ensuring access to safe and affordable housing, and upgrading slum settlements. Investing in public transport, creating green public spaces and improving urban planning and management in a way that is both participatory and inclusive.

“Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns”

Halving per capita global food waste at the retailer and consumer levels, creating more efficient production and supply chains. This can help with food security and shift us towards a more resource efficient economy.

“Build resilient infrastructure, promote sustainable industrialization and foster innovation”

Bridging the digital divide to ensure equal access to information and knowledge, and as a consequence foster innovation and entrepreneurship.

“Ensure access to water and sanitation for all”

Protecting and restoring water-related ecosystems such as forests, mountains, wetlands and rivers. Fostering international cooperation to encourage water efficiency and support treatment technologies in developing countries.

“Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all”

Achieving higher levels of productivity through technological innovation and promoting policies to encourage entrepreneurship and job creation. These measures are critical to eradicate challenges such as forced labour, slavery and human trafficking.

“Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts”

Strengthening the resilience and adaptive capacity of more vulnerable regions, such as land locked countries and island states; raising awareness and integrating measures into national policies and strategies.

“Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources”

Managing and protecting marine and coastal ecosystems from land-based pollution, as well as addressing the impacts of ocean acidification. Enhancing conservation and the sustainable use of ocean-based resources through international law will also help mitigate some of the challenges facing our oceans.

“Sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land degradation, halt biodiversity loss”

Conserving and restoring the use of terrestrial ecosystems such as forests, wetlands, drylands and mountains by 2020. Promoting the sustainable management of forests and halting deforestation.

“Promote just, peaceful and inclusive societies”

Strengthening the rule of law and promoting human rights, reducing the flow of illicit arms and strengthening the participation of developing countries in the institutions of global governance.

“Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls”

Ensuring universal access to sexual and reproductive health, and affording women equal rights to economic resources such as land and property.

“Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all”

Investing in clean energy sources such as solar, wind and thermal and adopting cost-effective standards for a wider range of technologies. Expanding infrastructure and upgrading technology to provide clean energy sources in all developing countries.

Role of SDGs in catalyzing transformation of India

Development goals underpin the critical development challenges faced by IndiaSDGs provide a broad framework to address today’s critical development challenges. Moreover, the relative criticality of 17 SDGs may vary depending on the specific needs and

opportunities. A close examination of India’s performance with respect to different SDGs highlights the urgent need to achieve targets outlined across a majority of SDGs.

Figure 3: India’s SDG Scorecard (illustrated through relevant examples)

194.6 million people are undernourished in India, which equals one-fourth of the undernourished population in the world. 4

India remains home to 1/4th of the world’s poor and more than 1/3rd of all malnourished children. 3

Only 28% of the Indian population enjoys access to 66% of India’s available hospital beds. 5

Close to 78% of students in grade III and 50% in grade V are not able to read the textbooks of grade II in India. 6

In 2011, only 29% of Indian women above the age of 15 were a part of the country’s labor force, compared to 81% men. 7

Around 37 million people in India are affected by water borne diseases, leading to a loss of around 73 million working days annually. 8

By 2040, India’s oil demand is expected to rise from 6 to 9.8 million barrels per day, which will push oil import dependence to above 90%. 9

One out of every three persons in the age group 15 to 29 years who have completed at least their graduation has been found to be unemployed in India. 10

India needs more than $640 billion in investments between 2012 and 2031 to build basic infrastructure for the country’s growing urban population. 11

In 2015, the top 1% of rich Indians owned 53% of the country’s wealth, while the share of the top 10% was 76%. 12

“Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) offer a comprehensive framework for companies to suitably align their activities, thereby contributing to solving global environmental and social challenges. At BMW Group, SDGs were carefully considered while drawing up the list of priority topics and are reflected in the Group’s holistic sustainability approach.”

Philipp von SahrPresident, BMW Group India

By 2030, it is predicted that 68 Indian cities will have more than one million inhabitants each, and six mega cities will have more than ten million inhabitants each. 13

Food worth Rs 44,000 crore is wasted annually due to lack of adequate storage infrastructure. 14

India’s emissions increased by 67% between 1990 and 2012, and are projected to increase by 85% by 2030 under business-as-usual scenario. 15

Around 30 fish species in the Western Ghats have been added to the endangered species list and 15 species added to the critically endangered list. 16

Close to 41% of the forest cover in India is considered degraded. 17

As of 2014, 31.3 million cases were pending in the courts across India, with the Supreme court having around 64,000 cases. 18

In 2014, India accounted for only 1.7% and 2.4% in world export and import respectively (as compared to China’s 12.3% and 10.3%). 19

“Revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development”

Enhancing North-South and South-South cooperation by supporting national plans to achieve all the targets. Promoting international trade, helping developing countries increase their exports, achieving a universal rules-based and equitable trading system that is fair and open and benefits all.

Government, in its part, could continue to play a major hand in driving the implementation of SDGs through a favourable policy landscapeEven though the SDG framework has been launched recently, there already are different policies and campaigns which seek to create an enabling ecosystem for the development goals. For instance, principles such as “SabkaSath, SabkaVikas”, “Swachh Bharat” and “Make in India campaign” are a step in that direction. Going forward, Government’s continued thrust on policies to support innovation and encouraging entrepreneurial interventions could further help accelerate action.

It is evident that a majority of SDGs are critical for India’s development agenda over the coming decade. For instance, with one-fourth of world’s total poor population, India clearly has an opportunity to improve socio-economic status of its citizens, which aligns well with the first goal of “No Poverty”. Similarly, a projected emissions increase of 85 percent (by 2030) underpins the urgent need for measures related to thirteenth development goal of “Climate Action”.

While the relevance of SDGs for India is well understood, the key question is – “How do we achieve the envisaged breadth and scale of transformation?” The expert consensus is that such a transformation can only be achieved through a collaboration of diverse stakeholders. Moreover, based on the ability to drive transformation at scale, government and businesses are uniquely positioned to accelerate this sustainable transformation journey for India.

Figure 4: Illustration of how Government in India can continue the development agenda through favourable policies

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Scheme launched in 2005 aims at enhancing the livelihood of households in rural areas by providing atleast one hundred days of guaranteed wage employment to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. 20

Re-INVEST 2015, Renewable Energy Global Investors Meet, provided a platform to promote investment in the renewable energy sector in India. Its objective was to showcase the Government of India’s commitment to the development and scaling up of renewable energy in India targeting 175 GW renewable capacity by 2022. 26

The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna (PMKVY) launched in 2015 is a demand-driven, reward-based skill training scheme which will incentivise skill training by providing financial rewards to candidates who successfully complete approved skill training programmes. Over the next year, PMKVY will up-skill 24 lakh youth across India. 27

Start-Up India programme rolled out in 2015 strives to promote a culture of entrepreneurship by setting aside INR 10,000 crore corpus for innovation driven enterprise, and incentives such as three-year break from paying income tax on profits, a Rs 500-crore per year credit guarantee mechanism, and exemption from capital gains tax. 28

The Jan Dhan Yojana was rolled out in2014 to promote financial inclusionby bringing banking services to the poor by offering them easy credit. As of Feb 2015, around $4.8 billion had been deposited in these accounts. 29

The National Food Security Act was launched in 2013 and it aims to provide subsidized food grains. All the existing programs such as Mid-day Meal Scheme, Integrated Child Development Services Scheme and Public Distribution System will fall under this act. 21

Mission Indradhanush was launched in 2014 with an objective of ensuring full immunization with seven vaccine preventable diseases to all children under the age of two years as well as pregnant women. 22

SWAYAM is a web-portal launched by the Ministry of Human Resource Development in 2014 to provide massive open online courses (MOOCs) on all kinds of subjects for free. Top university content is available to every possible learner with internet access. 23

Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao program was launched by the governmentin 2015 with an aim to saveand empower girl child throughintervention and multi-stakeholderaction in almost 100 districts withlow child sex ratio. 24

Swachh Bharat Mission was rolled out in 2015 to promote litter free India along with creating access to toilet for every household by 2019. $32 billion will be released to construct 120 million toilets across India. 25

“The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development provides India with a brilliant opportunity for accelerating our progress towards inclusive development. As a nation, we are a paradox of the most rapidly growing economy of the world on the one hand, and possessing some of the lowest social indicators on the other. With the clarion call of the Sustainable Development Goals before us, we need to garner all our resources and harness all our energies, into pushing forward dedicatedly to our goal of a fully developed Nation.”

Dr. Bhaskar ChatterjeeDirector General & CEO, Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs

Waste Minimization Circle is an initiative sponsored by the Ministry of Environment and Forests focused on spreading waste minimization concept and related techniques to achieve the same. 31

Government of India announced its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) post the climate change conference, COP 21 in Paris, which aims to reduce emission intensity by 33 to 35 percent by 2030 compared to 2005 levels. 32

The “Development of Marines Fisheries, Infrastructure and Post-Harvest Operations” scheme was announced in the 10th plan and it focusses on coastal fishing, assisting small scale fisheries and modernization of equipment. 33

The Compensatory Afforestation Bill was passed in 2015 to support afforestation across India. The Bill sets aside funds (national and state level), which will be primarily used to compensate for loss of forest cover, regeneration of forest ecosystem, wildlife protection and infrastructure development. 34

Government of India signed the peace treaty with NSCN (Naga outfit) in 2015, bringing to end an insurgency that lasted for six decades and promoting peace in the region. 35

Government of India set up a Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED) with China in 2014 to explore new areas for economic cooperation in various fields including industrial investment, infrastructure development, energy conservation and environment protection, high-tech industry, clean energy and sustainable urbanization. 36

It is evident that through policy framework, Government has an opportunity to continue playing an active role in the adoption the SDG agenda. The question still remains – “what do businesses have to do with the world’s greatest development goals?”

Note: The above table is not intended to be an exhaustive coverage of policies related to each SDG in India. It only seeks to illustrate some of the already existing policies to support each SDG in India.

The SDG Framework presents a unique opportunity for businesses to move from Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to Corporate Social Opportunity (CSO)Based on Accenture Strategy research, it is evident that businesses have engaged in both MDGs and SDGs at various levels. However, leading organizations are the ones that view SDGs as an opportunity to look for new ways to develop and grow their business. These organizations or “corporate disruptors” are leveraging SDGs to migrate from a focus on Corporate Social Responsibility to one of Corporate Social Opportunity, gaining competitive edge

while creating societal and environmental benefits valued by the global community. 37 These are the organizations that are well-positioned to drive profitable growth despite the external challenges. A common underlying feature of these organizations is that they view implementation of SDGs from the lens of value creation – i.e. growing revenues, reducing costs, mitigating risks and improving brand value.

The figure below provides an illustration of how leading organizations in India are creating value through alignment with SDGs and, in the process, helping drive the sustainable transformation of India.

Figure 5: How leading organizations are creating value through adoption of SDG agenda

SDG How businesses are embracing SDGs - An illustration

Nestle has rolled out a Women Dairy Development Program in Moga village, Punjab to secure its supply chain in a fragmented market. Through this effort, the company is able to enhance the livelihood of women in that region and thereby improve the economic scenario. 38

Dabur runs an initiative called “Dil Se Dua”, wherein during the festive season of Rakhi and Diwali, signatures are collected from consumers to seek their support for Dabur’s pledge against hunger and malnutrition. Against each signature, Dabur donates a pack of Real fruit juice, which is distributed to an underprivileged kid to meet their nutritional needs. 39 This allows Dabur to potentially tap a new target segment over the long run and also create a positive brand image.

Vodafone India has launched a new health focused mobile web service, Ask a Doctor – Health@5, which enables its subscribers to ask health related questions to medical experts at an affordable price thereby enabling wider access to healthcare even to remote and rural locations (while creating a revenue stream for itself). 40

The Tata Steel Education Excellence Programme (TEEP) was launched to improve the quality of education across India. Teachers and principals undergo training to assess schools participating in the programme, once a year. Currently, 2,500 teachers and 100,000 students are benefited through this program. 41

YES Bank launched an initiative called LEAP, which aims at providing financial services like credit, saving and micro insurance to Self Help Groups through local partnerships to build capacity of the financially disadvantaged. As of March 2014, the program had reached out to 40,000 Women Self Help Groups, thereby driving women empowerment while creating a new potential customer base over the long run. 42

The Smart City Mission was rolled out in 2014 to drive economic growth and improve the quality of life of people. A budget of Rs 48,000 crore has been set aside by the government to make 98 cities smart. First set of 20 cities have been shortlisted to start the project. 30

Tata Chemicals launched a low cost purifier for Indian low-income groups, who lack access to safe drinking water. This is the most economical storage purifier available in India and is available from INR 999. 43

Suzlon launched the “Swacha Hawa Mission” campaign at one of its recent conferences (RE-INVEST), wherein each visitor was requested to pledge in contributing towards cleaner air by tagging their visiting card to the tree at the stand. Suzlon would then plant a tree at its wind parks present across the country for each visitor who had pledged. 44

RangSutra is a company that bridges the gap between the artisans and the community by establishing a platform for artisans living in remote regions to sell their handmade products thereby improving their economic scenario and ensuring stability of their jobs. 45

Gujarat International Finance Tech-City is an under-construction project in Gujarat set up by the state government and IL&FS. It is positioned to be a financial and IT services hub. This city is expected to provide job opportunities to over 500,000 people and offer world class services in terms of quality of life, infrastructure and ambience. 46

ITC launched “E-Choupal” initiative, which provides internet access to rural farmers with an objective to empower them to take more informed business decisions. This allowed ITC to better manage up-stream supply chain while improving the quality of life for farmers. 47

Mahindra Reva designs and manufactures compact electric cars, licenses out its electric vehicle technologies, electrifies existing platforms, and helps deliver integrated zero-emissions mobility solutions which are key for sustainable transportation in cities. 48

Hindustan Unilever Ltd has taken several active steps towards responsible production through sustainably sourced raw materials. In 2014, around 16% of tea sourced from India for Unilever’s brands was from sustainable estates certified by Rain Forest Alliance in India. 49

Sun Edison is setting up over 100 off-grid solar energy plants in rural India. The initiative is creating shared value by bringing economic opportunity to villagers through use of electricity and creating new customer base for the company at the same time.

Asthamudi Estuary, Kerala becomes the first clam fishery in India to be certified by MSC (Marine Stewardship Council) for sustainable fishing. It is the second largest estuarine system in Kerala and it supports the livelihoods of around 3,000 fishermen involved in collection, cleaning processing and trading of clams. WWF-India, the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) and the Kerala State Fisheries Department were responsible for this initiative. 50

ITC has committed to promote sustainable forestry. All the units under its Paperboards and Specialty Papers Division are Forest Stewardship Council certified, guaranteeing ethical and legal sourcing of wood. 51

Sanlaap is focused on gender injustice and violence against women and children. The primary work is focused against trafficking of women and children for commercial sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and forced prostitution. 52

The Rockefeller Foundation’s Smart Power for Rural Development (SPRD) is an innovative partnership seeking to drive social and economic development in rural communities through expanding access to reliable decentralized electricity. Focused initially on India, SPRD brings together key stakeholders including energy service companies, government agencies, investors, anchor customers such as cell towers, micro-enterprise accelerators, and local non-governmental organizations to expand access to electricity for 1,000 villages in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh by 2018. By building a sustainable and scalable market for renewable mini-grid operators, SPRD is helping create an enabling environment for new local entrepreneurs to emerge, spurring more inclusive economic growth and development. 53 According to Ashvin Dayal, Associate Vice President and Managing Director - Asia, Rockefeller Foundation, “By bringing together the right mix of committed public, private and social sector partners we can build a sustainable, pro-poor market for energy access that will transform lives of millions of under-served population in India and elsewhere”.

“It is my belief that businesses are uniquely placed to make a meaningful contribution to sustainable and inclusive growth given the transformational capacity that resides in its entrepreneurial vitality, creative capability and innovative capacity. Corporates that are driven by a superordinate vision to serve larger societal priorities can indeed make a significant and growing contribution to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”

Y C DeveshwarChairman, ITC

Critical success factors for accelerated implementation in India

Need for a decentralized approach to manage scale

Given the sheer size of a country like India, it accounts for a significant share of the world’s development challenges. For instance, India is home to almost one-third of the world’s 1.2 billion poor people. Every year, there are close to 1 million children below the age of five who perish due to acute malnutrition. Additionally, there are close to 44,000 women who succumb to death from childbirth due to inadequate access to healthcare. Given the scale of these challenges, there is a general consensus amongst experts that India’s ability to successfully meet SDG targets is critical for the overall success of SDGs. In fact,

interestingly the state of Uttar Pradesh alone accounts for approximately 8% of the world’s population living in extreme poverty. If Uttar Pradesh were to successfully achieve the targets related to the first development goal (of No Poverty), the world will be on its way to achieving the first development goal. 54

While the role India plays in the overall success of SDGs is widely acknowledged, there is also a critical need to create the necessary ecosystem for a successful roll-out of SDGs. In fact, learnings from the implementation of MDGs over the past one and a half decade highlight the critical success factors for India.

In India, the MDGs were broadly implemented by the central government. However, there were practical challenges faced with respect to the “last mile connectivity”. Given the federal governance structure in India, experts believe that adopting a decentralized approach through active participation of state governments and civil society would be critical. In this

context, the role of newly constituted NITI Aayog would be important. There may be a need to set-up an innovative ecosystem to facilitate collaboration across central and state governments, to drive the progress across 17 developments goals and underlying 169 targets. 55

The SDG framework represents a significant jump in terms of scope of coverage vis-à-vis the MDGs. For instance, while MDGs encapsulated 8 development goals and 18 associated targets, the SDG framework comprises of 17 development goals and 169 underlying targets. Given this expansion in scope, there may be significant efforts required to establish a robust monitoring and evaluation framework to track the progress on implementation of

SDGs. In fact, experts opine that in the 12th Five-Year Plan (which had only 25 indicators), there were practical challenges faced with respect to availability of reliable data to track and monitor progress. In light of this, there is a significant need to strengthen the monitoring framework to objectively track the progress of implementation of SDGs. 56

Framework for monitoring and evaluation

One of the fundamental ways in which SDGs differ from MDGs is that these new goals require sustainable funding sources to achieve the ambitious targets set for the 2015-2030 timeframe. The investments are needed to support all goals, including quality R&D for innovation, massive capital investments for infrastructure capacity and expansion, testing and scaling of proven solutions, and financing of new techniques. An investment of around $74 billion per year is needed to end hunger in India by 2030. 57 It is also expected that India will need around $465 billion to be spent on infrastructure development over the next five years, with 70% funds needed for power, roads and urban infrastructure segments. 58

Access to Resources

We are now part of a time and an era where resources are far too scarce than until a few years ago. Many industry players are competing for these severe natural resources. Industry today, is continuously challenged to explore ways to innovate and optimize their resources – manpower, financial and environmental – which helps them in addressing the triple bottom line frame-work for supporting sustainability goals.

The new Sustainable Development Goals announced by the United Nations clearly sets the agenda for business leadership to steer its operations that are inclusive, broad based and sustainable besides providing alternative pathways for incessant efforts that businesses contribute more fully not just in making profits but also in taking forward its societal and environmental responsibilities.”

Dinesh K Sarraf Chairman & Managing Director,Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited

“India’s resource sector has huge potential to contribute to the nation’s economy. For long term sustainability, India must focus on exploration and resource development and boost investment in the resource sector through an enabling regulatory & policy environment and predictable fiscal regimes.

As a resource company, we continue to improve our operational efficiencies by leveraging innovation and technology. Our commitment towards Social License to Operate goes beyond the regulatory compliance and is focused on the development and growth of a wider network of stakeholders including the host communities. Sustainability is about securing the future, and together, we can make India self-reliant in the resource space.”

Tom Albanese CEO, Vedanta Limited

“Digital infrastructure is very essential to connect various systems together so that there is better interaction and monitoring possibilities. Real time data enables us to drive specific initiatives more effectively and in a timely manner. At Infosys, real time monitoring and control of our campus operations have reduced our energy and water consumption by nearly 50% in the last 8 years. The data collected ensures sustained performance and provides valuable inputs for future designs, and it’s a continuous improvement cycle.”

Dr. N.R. Narayana Murthy Founder, Infosys Ltd

SummaryThis introductory paper on the relevance of SDGs in India demonstrates the critical need to drive sustainable growth and transformation of India during 2015 – 2030. It is evident that SDGs provide a robust and holistic framework to address the development challenges, which global economies are confronted with today - India being no exception!

From an implementation perspective, the critical first step for a country like India might be to decompose the broad SDG framework and identify its relevance, along with the most pressing issues and opportunities, at different levels such as Centre, States and Districts. In this context, it is important to note that the adoption of the SDG framework is not an all-or-nothing scenario. It is entirely possible that a particular state may need to focus on just a handful of SDGs in the first phase of implementation, before embarking on a more holistic transformation journey.

It is also important to note that demystifying the broad SDG framework may require an active dialogue across diverse players with different “influential” capabilities.This could include participants such as government, departments such as NITI Aayog, businesses, NGOs, institutional players, academia as well as citizens. It is heartening to note that at different levels, the process has already started. For instance, states such as Kerala and Assam have already launched a capacity building program to demystify and embrace SDGs. In its part, Accenture Strategy is working closely with UNGC to conduct a study of CEO perspectives and understanding imperatives for businesses to adopt the SDG framework. As a nation, as we move forward with our transformation journey, it would be critical to realize synergies from all these related but somewhat “discrete” initiatives to realize India’s true sustainable development potential.

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“The Global Compact has helped further the cause of sustainability around the world. Following COP21, Sustainability thought and action is entering a more active phase and the GCNI is playing a key role in helping India meet its commitments to the international community made in Paris. All of this will make a positive contribution towards achieving the SDGs.”

Ulhas Yargop Group President, (IT Sector) & Group CTO,Chairman, Mahindra Group Sustainability Council

“The post 2015 global development agenda, guided by the Sustainable Development Goals, calls for an articulate and universally inclusive financing framework that must be transparent, accountable, and result-oriented. For India, as one of the most vulnerable regions to climate impact, public and private financing is mission critical and needs to work collaboratively through innovative climate finance mechanisms. This would deliver on the twin responsibilities of poverty eradication and moving towards a low carbon growth economy.”

Rana KapoorFounder & CEO, YES BankChairman, YES Institute

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Study Leads

Pooran C. PandeyVishvesh Prabhakar

Lead Authors

Sundeep SinghWinsley PeterPalak Kapoor

The authors would like to thank the following people for their insights and assistance

Ritesh Kapoor, Kinkini Roy Choudhary, Abhishek Srivastava, Jay Thakkar and Amanpreet Talwar

For further information please contact:

Vishvesh PrabhakarManaging Director, Sustainability, Accenture Strategy, Indiavishvesh.prabhakar@accenture.com

Sundeep SinghPrincipal, Sustainability,Accenture Strategy, Indiasundeep.singh@accenture.com

Pooran Chandra PandeyExecutive DirectorUN Global Compact Network Indiapooran.pandey@globalcompact.in

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About Global Compact Network India

Global Compact Network India (GCNI), formed in November 2000, was registered in 2003 as a non-profit society to function as the Indian Local Network of the UN Global Compact, New York. It is the first Local Network in the world to be established with full legal recognition. It, also as a country level platform for businesses, civil organisations, public and private sector, aids in aligning stakeholders’ responsible practices towards the Ten Universally Accepted Principles of UNGC in the areas of Human Rights, Labour, Environment and Anti-corruption, broad UN goals including Sustainable Development Goals and other key sister initiatives of the United Nations and its systems.

At present, the India Network ranks among the top 10, out of more than 90 Local Networks in the world. It has also emerged as the largest corporate sustainability initiative in India and globally with a pan India membership of 230 leading business and non-business participants and 341 signatories, strengthening their commitment to the UN Global Compact Principles by becoming proud members of the Local Network in India.

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