SPEECH BY Mr Sam
Tan, Parliamentary
Secretary, Ministry of Trade and Industry &
Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts
AT THE SINGAPORE SUSTAINABILITY AWARDS GALA DINNER
& AWARDS PRESENTATION, FAIRMONT INTERNATIONAL, 5 MAY 2010 AT
8.00 PM
Mr. Teng Theng Dar, CEO, Singapore
Business Federation
Mr. Teng Theng Dar, CEO, Singapore Business Federation
Mr. Er
Kwong Hwa, Chairman of ECO World Advisory
Committee
Ms. Teresa Lim, Managing Director,
IBM Singapore
Distinguished
Guests,
Ladies and
Gentlemen
Introduction
Good evening.I am delighted to join
you this evening to honour the winners of the inaugural Outstanding
Sustainability Awards and Green IT
Awards.
Increasingly, governments and businesses are paying more
attention to issues such as climate change and sustainable
development.The confluence of energy prices, technology solutions
and consumer awareness has led many companies to put sustainability
at the core of their business. For many, it now makes good business
sense to do so. Resource efficiency can help manage cost in an
increasingly competitive environment. More discerning consumers and
investors are now also demanding sustainable business
practices.
This is a sea change in thinking for many companies.
Creating a sustainability-centered organizational structure across
a range of operational and corporate planning functions is
challenging. It also requires management buy-in, attention and
follow-through.
The Singapore Sustainability Awards
recognises this and assesses companies on a broad spectrum of
criteria. It reflects the holistic approach that companies have
taken to sustainable development. I am pleased to see that this
evening’s award winners come from diverse sectors of the economy,
such as property development, energy and heavy industry. This shows
that the concept of sustainable development in business is gaining
traction across the
economy.
In this regard,
I would like to highlight one economic sector which has the
potential to make a major positive impact on sustainable
development. This is the
infocomm sector. It is widely known that the infocomm sector
contributes about 2% of worldwide carbon emissions. This is not
insignificant – it is equivalent to the carbon emissions attributed
to the entire aviation industry. Hence, there is tremendous
potential for this sector to do more, especially given that it is
typically seen as being at the forefront of technological
development.
I am therefore pleased that tonight’s Green IT Awards give due recognition to Singapore-based enterprises that have developed outstanding sustainable IT practices that meet the needs of business, the environment and society. The government on its part, is also providing support and collaborating with the IT industry to become more energy efficient, and reduce the environmental impact associated with IT. One example is the development of a Green Data Centre standard for use in Singapore.The standard will provide companies with a recognised framework and a methodology so that systems and processes can be established to improve the energy efficiency of their data centres. This standard, to be ready by the end of this year, will help boost the adoption of greener and more efficient data centres.
It should also be noted that IT itself can also be a key enabler in sustainable business. Frost & Sullivan, for example, estimates that ICT-enabled energy efficient products will bring about US$950 billion in savings for both businesses and households by 2020.
However, for us to succeed, our business leaders, our community leaders and our people, have to share a common vision, and work together to bring about changes needed in our households, our communities, our businesses and our country.
Conclusion
In this regard, I would like to acknowledge the efforts of the Singapore Business Federation and various industry partners to promote the understanding and practice of sustainable development among the business community. The Awards being presented tonight are an important step in the right direction. They also show that there is much potential for Singapore to become a leading hub for sustainable development practices and innovative green business solutions.
To the winners of tonight’s awards, my heartiest congratulations. I hope that many more organisations will follow your lead in implementing the best practices of sustainable development
Thank you