Representatives of companies that won the 2023 Top50 Corporate Sustainability Awards from Nhịp Cầu Đầu Tư magazine in HCM City on Thursday. — Photo Courtesy award organiser

HCM CITY – Environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) investment is imperative for companies if they do not want to miss out on orders and tie-up opportunities, a seminar titled “Net Zero Heroes” heard in HCM City on Thursday.

Corporate speakers at the event agreed that businesses have favoured ESG investment in recent years due to better awareness about climate change, illness risks, resource depletion, and inequity.

Increased scrutiny from investors, changes in consumer and customer expectations and policy changes have made ESG standards vital for enterprises, they said.

ESG is an indispensable trend in which the question that companies should answer is not “yes or no?” but “how to do it effectively?” they said.

ESG knowledge has developed strongly in Việt Nam though practical adoption is low due to capacity shortage, an executive from a venture capital company said.

He said many companies are worried about not undertaking ESG initiatives, but he advised them that ESG is a long road, and they could not achieve sustainability in a day and could gradually improve at it.

The experts agreed that ESG is the way forward for companies since partners in Việt Nam and abroad and consumers care deeply about environment data.

Therefore, ESG initiatives could help them get orders and investments, especially since Việt Nam is in the global supply chain.

Organised by Nhịp Cầu Đầu Tư (The Business Review) magazine, the seminar attracted executives from domestic and foreign companies in Việt Nam.

Top 50 corporate sustainability awards

On the same day Nhịp Cầu Đầu Tư magazine gave away the 2023 Top 50 Corporate Sustainability Awards to honour companies that have contributed to sustainable development, environmental friendliness and social justice.

The awards also aim to encourage companies and the public to undertake sustainable development in the most efficient manner.

There are 18 award categories that focus on companies’ strengths in sustainable development throughout the year.

The jury included the heads of Nhịp Cầu Đầu Tư magazine, HSBC, Deloitte, PwC, VinaCapital, the Institute for Circular Economy Development, Talentnet, VinaCapital, and Schneider Electric.

There were 18 awards, including two special ones voted by the jury.

The winning companies included Phú Nhuận Jewerly Joint Stock Companh, Central Retail Vietnam, Gamuda Land Vietnam, CapitaLand Development, BAT Vietnam, and Nestle Vietnam.

On the occasion, the Nhịp Cầu Đầu Tư Sustainable Development Advisory Council was launched to provide technical support and in-depth advice to Vietnamese enterprises in sustainable development.

On it sit executives and experts from HSBC, Schneider Electric, VinaCapital, UOB, FUNiX Online educational institution, and Udemy. -- VNS