Azerbaijan's Hosting COP29 Raises Grasp Of Viable Dev't - Pwc Manager (Exclusive Interview) (PHOTO/VIDEO)

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Azerbaijan's selection as the COP29 host has heightened business awareness of ESG (environmental, social, and governance) principles and created a drive to adhere to them, Shaukat Tapia, new Country Managing Partner of PwC for Azerbaijan told Trend in an exclusive interview.

To note, ESG encompasses criteria for assessing a company's sustainability, focusing on its environmental impact, social responsibilities, and quality of management. It includes three key components: environmental, social, and governance factors.

Shaukat Tapia was appointed as PwC's Country Managing Partner effective July 1, 2024.

According to him, the most important goal is to establish a platform for fostering cooperation, exchanging views, and facilitating dialogue.

"Together with the UN, we organized a summit that effectively facilitated this. ESG practices and company collaboration were discussed extensively with stakeholders and regulators. I think it set the basis for concrete progress, which is vital," he stated.

The managing partner highlighted key findings from PwC Azerbaijan's latest ESG report.

"In our first ESG survey, about 21 companies participated, including local Azerbaijani firms, multinationals, and Azerbaijani multinational companies. Some key insights: approximately two-thirds of participants have a basic to advanced understanding of ESG principles; 27 percent have a documented ESG strategy and implementation roadmap; and around 70 percent are concerned about climate change and energy issues. Notably, Azerbaijan's selection as the host country for COP29 has heightened business awareness of ESG and increased the motivation to adopt these practices," Tapia noted.

He noted that public-private partnerships provide a platform for exchanging resources, ideas, and perspectives.

“COP29 has certainly laid an excellent foundation for this. Regulators, stakeholders, and companies are actively engaging in discussions on how to tackle the challenges businesses face and their methods for implementing ESG practices. The ESG Summit, co-organized by PwC Azerbaijan and the UN, exemplified a forum where many ideas and paths forward on ESG were shared. It was truly inspiring,” he added.

Shaukat Tapia also discussed opportunities for Azerbaijani companies to integrate ESG principles into their operations.

“Lack of knowledge, restricted funds, and regulatory issues are the key issues. However, these problems offer great potential. Knowledge improves innovation, risk management, stakeholder confidence, and compliance. ESG reduces regulatory noncompliance. Commercially, it enables access to foreign capital as funding institutions increasingly prioritize ESG concepts and regulatory compliance,” he concluded.

To note, PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) is a leading global network of professional services firms providing a wide range of services, including audit, advisory, and tax services. PwC is renowned for its expertise in ESG, helping organizations navigate the complexities of sustainable development, ethical governance, and social responsibility.

In Azerbaijan, PwC has been at the forefront of promoting ESG practices. The company has worked with various local and international clients to integrate ESG considerations into their business strategies, ensuring compliance with global standards and enhancing their sustainability performance.

This November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 70–80,000 foreign guests.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COP - the Conference of the Parties - is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, with its secretariat in Bonn.

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