Mr. Thomas Thomas, the CEO of ASEAN CSR Network was in Laos for the 12^th ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication (12^th SOMRDPE) from 13-14 October 2015. There, he made a presentation on the theme “Public, Private and People Partnership (4Ps) for the Post-2015 Sustainable Development in ASEAN.”

Mr. Thomas talked about responsible business practices as a way of achieving equitable, inclusive and sustainable development and poverty eradication. 

However to achieve such goals, we need to tackle challenges such as human rights and poverty; climate change, food security and sustainable agriculture; and corruption. That’s where the 4Ps come in.

Providing regulations and taxes is no longer sufficient for governments any more. They need to work in partnership with civil society and businesses to adopt responsible business practices.

Civil society’s role in this equation is to provide feedback on the ground, by advocating, monitoring and assisting companies and government.

Moving forward, businesses have to move beyond just making profits and return on investment.

They have to embed CSR in their business operations, such as respecting people, overseeing environmental stewardship and ensuring that corporate governance is practiced throughout their companies. Businesses can also be involved in and develop the community through offering education, employment creation and skills development, etc.

In addition, they can continue engagement with stakeholders such as the ASEAN CSR Network and the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Rural Development and Poverty Eradication through potential joint projects, implement the ASEAN CSR Vision 2020 and monitor progress on responsible business practices.

By working together collectively, we can journey together and build an inclusive, equitable and sustainable ASEAN Community post-2015 that is economically progressive, socially responsible and people-centred ASEAN.