ESG

KUALA LUMPUR: Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) launched the supplier support programme (PSSP) to encourage Malaysia’s oil and gas services and equipment (OGSE) suppliers to embrace sustainability principles. The programme is in collaboration with the Joint Committee for Climate Change (JC3) greening value chain (GVC) programme, Bursa Malaysia Bhd and the UN Global Compact Network Malaysia and Brunei (UNGCMYB). The national oil company said the PSSP aims to provide necessary tools, capability training and access to transition financing for Malaysia’s OGSE suppliers to increase the adoption and disclosure of sustainability practices. Petronas Executive Vice President and Group Chief Financial Officer Liza Mustapha said she recognised the challenges that OGSE suppliers, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs), encounter in adopting sustainability practices crucial for the energy transition. “We are rallying with our suppliers in support of a just transition that ensures no one is left behind. “The PSSP is a significant milestone, providing a platform for the industry to demonstrate practical action and inspire others,” she said. Petronas noted that it will be an anchor in the GVC programme, whereby suppliers will be exposed to the environmental, social and governance knowledge and capacity-building programmes specific to the OGSE industry that cater to suppliers of all maturity levels. It shared that via the programme, suppliers will also benefit from the centralised sustainability intelligence platform, which provides tools to help businesses measure, manage and report their carbon emissions and sustainability risks. “(They will also have) access to financing, including Bank Negara Malaysia’s low carbon transition facility and high tech and green facility to support their transition efforts,” it added. — BERNAMA

GEORGE TOWN: The Small and Medium Enterprises Association of Malaysia (SAMENTA) will intensify its efforts to assist small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the country, in improving their compliance with environmental social and governance (ESG) standards. Its President Datuk William Ng said many SMEs still struggle with meeting these essential standards which are crucial for maintaining competitiveness in the industry. “There are numerous issues requiring SAMENTA’s attention but ESG compliance is a particularly pressing one. We aim to support SMEs in addressing this challenge, by enhancing their understanding and knowledge of ESG requirements,” he said. In addition to ESG compliance, Ng highlighted that a major issue faced by SMEs both in Penang and nationwide is low productivity. Many SMEs still operate below the productivity levels seen in larger companies. Commenting further, he noted that various forms of assistance have been provided to help SMEs increase productivity, including through the SME digitalisation programme. This initiative, in collaboration with the Penang government during the Covid-19 pandemic, supported 1,000 SMEs with donations to implement digital solutions in their businesses. He also mentioned that SAMENTA has over 5,000 members nationwide, while the total number of SMEs in Malaysia is estimated at 1.2 million. — BERNAMA

DONGYING: Dongying in East China’s Shandong province has been making significant strides in implementing the national strategy for the protection of the Yellow River in recent years, focusing on advancing ecological conservation and promoting green, low-carbon and high-quality development. Its efforts have resulted in a remarkable improvement in the quality of the ecological environment, with steady progress made in the construction of an ecological civilization and the continuous enhancement of the environmental governance system. The heart of these efforts lies in the building of the Yellow River Delta National Nature Reserve, where a diverse array of bird species has found sanctuary. Due to the comprehensive ecological restoration network established around the reserve, the bird population has doubled since the reserve’s inception, showcasing the success of conservation and restoration efforts. With the creation of the Yellow River Estuary National Park, the city has pioneered wetland restoration models specific to the Yellow River Estuary. Through 17 wetland restoration projects, the reserve has replenished 469 million cubic meters of water, connected over 241km of water systems, and restored 282,000 mu (18,800 hectares) of freshwater wetlands, among other achievements. What was once barren or saline-alkali lands have been transformed into lush wetlands teeming with biodiversity, creating a paradise for birds. A total of 373 bird species have been identified in the reserve. Dongying has also made targeted efforts to combat severe pollution by enhancing the coordinated control of PM2.5 and ozone. By emphasising targeted and scientific atmospheric governance, the city has seen stable improvement in key environmental indicators. To drive ecological conservation, the city has been developing a green, low-carbon economy. It has accelerated the implementation of the “dual carbon” strategy of peak carbon emissions and carbon neutrality, with 20 key emission units in the power generation sector participating in national carbon emission trading. Furthermore, Dongying is focusing on innovative approaches in the construction of a park city, aiming to create a livable and prosperous environment while enhancing modern urban governance.

JAKARTA: ASEAN and the European Union (EU) have launched a US$10.17 million (€9.3 million) programme, the Sustainable Connectivity Package (SCOPE) in Higher Education, aimed at enhancing student and academic mobility in ASEAN and fostering EU-ASEAN cross-regional university networks in research. The programme, scheduled to run until January 2028, also aims to strengthen vocational education with a focus on the green transition, sustainability and digitalisation. The launching was officiated by ASEAN secretary-general Dr Kao Kim Hourn and Ambassador of the European Union to ASEAN Sujiro Seam at the ASEAN headquarters. “These partnerships not only empower our future leaders but also serve as bridges that close divides and create equitable opportunities for all,” Kao said. Meanwhile, Seam said the SCOPE in Higher Education project is part of the overall EU-ASEAN Sustainable Connectivity Package (scOPE) that was adopted by the EU in April 2023. “Southeast Asia is a key region and we want to further develop sustainable and trusted connections with ASEAN countries,” he said. This year, through the Erasmus Plus programme, the EU granted Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s degree scholarships to more than 200 ASEAN students, allowing them to study in two or more European countries. From 2014 to 2023, nearly 12,000 ASEAN students and scholars participated in short-term studies and teaching in Europe, while around 6,000 European students and scholars came to ASEAN for similar opportunities. In research, the EU funded 90 grants through the Horizon Europe programme between 2021 and 2024, involving 109 institutions from ASEAN, with a total EU contribution of US$11.59 million. — BERNAMA

China’s growing senior population is bringing tremendous business opportunities to the financial services industry, says Michael Guo, Co-CEO of Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. According to Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd Co-Chief Executive Officer, Michael Guo, the ageing population in the country has a low awareness of the need to plan ahead financially for senior care. Because of this, senior care services in the China market are fragmented and lack unified standards. Realising this, Ping An is taking the lead of building an ‘integrated finance + health and senior care’ service system to provide professional financial advisory, family doctor and senior care concierge services. “China is ageing before becoming rich,” Guo said. “When China entered the phase of an ageing society in 1999, the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita was only US$1,000. In comparison, when developed countries in Europe and the US encountered ageing populations, their GDP per capita was approximately US$10,000.” “This shows that they had stronger financial capacity to support senior care. Today, the challenge in China is that the retirement replacement ratio is low and there is a lack of awareness of the importance of financial planning for senior care,” he explained. Guo also believes that as average life expectancy increases, people will attach greater importance to pensions and start planning earlier. Hence, the demand for capital preservation and appreciation, with the goal of building a ‘personal pension reserve’, will become the core demand of wealth management. Integrating Financial Products and Senior Care Currently, China’s insurance industry is aware of the market opportunities in wealth management for seniors and is working on designing “finance + senior care” products. However, Guo commented that the product types are too generic. “Fulfilling the needs of seniors cannot be done by simply adding senior care products together, but should be a comprehensive solution, which is organically combined and adjusted to meet the customised demand of the seniors at different stages of their lifecycles,” he added. For example, seniors who are relatively healthy may want more social interaction, travel, hobbies and learning, to maintain physical and mental health. Seniors with chronic diseases would require appropriate disease management, and for some, disability care services. To date, China’s senior care and healthcare services sector is still in its early stages, and some of the main challenges include service fragmentation, the uneven quality of services, processes, its costs, as well as a lack of unified standards and service monitoring systems. Being a senior care insurance solutions provider, Ping An integrates healthcare and senior care services with an aim to meet the different demands of senior customers in health, medication for chronic diseases, and senior care. Its products also include financial products that offer insurance protection, wealth appreciation, wealth inheritance, and healthcare and senior care services, such as chronic disease management, health management, medical consultations and rehabilitation, residence security, guardianship and entertainment. “The strength of Ping An lies in its ability to integrate providers into a comprehensive senior care service platform that can meet customers’ personalised needs,” said Guo. Today in China, 90% of seniors choose home-based senior care. Meanwhile, Ping An’s home-based senior care services include Ping An Health’s online diagnostic platform, which offers 24/7 treatment and consultation services. It has consolidated extensive offline healthcare service resources, including 100% coverage of the top 100 and 3A hospitals in China, nearly 50,000 in-house and contracted doctors, about 2,400 partner senior doctors, and 230,000 partner pharmacies. Integrating more than 100 suppliers, the in-home care offers a suite of 650 services and a 24/7 home-based concierge service in 54 cities, with more than 80,000 customers eligible for these benefits. Technological Empowerment of the Senior Care Industry Technological empowerment plays an important role in Ping An’s senior care strategy. For example, home-based senior care is supported by an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven concierge. Currently, AI has been fully implemented in 200 scenarios for online concierge customer interactions and support for human concierges. AI can offer further assistance to efficiently empower homecare workers and nurses, leading to greater efficiency and quality improvements. “The entire financial insurance industry can leverage its own financial data and combine it with the senior care industry to accumulate data and continue to explore the empowering and enhancing the role of data and technology,” Guo continued. Another key aspect of technology in senior care is data application. On this, Ping An possesses one of the world’s largest healthcare databases, including a disease database, prescription database, drug database, doctor and hospital database, and personal health database. The data – sourced from public sources, including the National Health Commission, National Healthcare Security Administration, and National Medical Products Administration – has already been used in scenarios such as health insurance underwriting and claims and assisting users to find information on diseases, drugs, hospitals, and doctors.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) has launched the ‘SSM Corporate Code of Ethics’ book to emphasise its steadfast commitment to integrity, ethics and anti-corruption practices. According to SSM, the book aims to support the application of best corporate governance practices among the commission members, its management, employees, sports and welfare club officers, cooperative board members, suppliers and stakeholders. Its Chief Executive Officer Datuk Nor Azimah Abdul Aziz said all SSM employees are committed to ensuring compliance with the laws governing business entities in Malaysia and corporate laws, as well as fostering positive developments in the corporate and business sectors. “This publication reinforces our pledge to maintain those values through responsible, transparent and ethical behaviour,” Nor Azimah said during the book launch. The book, which is in line with the National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS) 2024-2028, provides guidance on responsibilities and principles to enhance integrity and accountability in SSM. — BERNAMA

PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia seeks to cooperate with China in establishing a shared consensus during engagements with the European Union, particularly regarding the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), said Deputy Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Chan Foong Hin. Chan affirmed Malaysia’s commitment to supplying China with Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certified products, aiming to address the EUDR’s implementation and impact. “Malaysia looks forward to cooperating with China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) to promote sustainable development, environmental protection, and address climate change through the MSPO Certification Scheme in the Chinese market,” Chan said in a statement. He said these issues were raised during a G2G bilateral meeting with vice minister of China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment Zhao Yingmin in Beijing last Friday, which received a positive response. According to the statement, Chan highlighted Malaysia’s active efforts to address the four challenges posed by the EUDR: Traceability System, Legal Land Title, Deforestation-Free and No Forced Labour. The MSPO certification scheme, mandatory since 1 January 2020, plays a key role in these efforts. In addition to the green value chain, Malaysia welcomes initiatives by the Chinese Government to use biofuel, especially biodiesel and Sustainable Aviation Fuel. “In this regard, Malaysia pledges support for these efforts through technical information exchange and biofuel supplies,” Chan said. Chan also spoke at the Roundtable Dialogue on the Malaysia-China Green Value Chain Partnership, discussing low-carbon development and the transition in the palm oil sector. He emphasised that developing a green economy requires international cooperation and joint efforts. He said Malaysia and China will continue to strengthen policy alignment, deepen technical exchanges and promote green projects for mutual benefit. “We hope that through this high-level dialogue, we can work with all parties to explore low-carbon development and the transition to palm oil, promoting the green economy and resilient recovery,” Chan added. Chan also held a G2G bilateral meeting with vice minister of the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) Zhao Zenglian to discuss technical collaboration and trade agreements. “Malaysia looks forward to continued cooperation with the GACC on port supervision and food safety. “This is crucial as smooth collaboration paves the way for exploring international cooperation in key areas, such as palm oil,” he said. — BERNAMA