Hayleys was recently chosen as one of four private sector representatives worldwide to address Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at the opening plenary session of the first United Nations Private Sector Forum on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Food Sustainability.

Group Chairman N. G. Wickremeratne spoke on ‘Water Access and Management,’ the theme assigned to the first of seven roundtable discussions initiated by the UN Global Compact Office, according to a statement issued by Hayleys.

Four Heads of State, Chairmen and CEOs from 33 international companies, the heads of 17 global business associations, 16 civil society organisations and foundations, and 17 UN agencies and senior bureaucrats from four governments attended the September 24 event in New York. Among the many eminent personalities who participated in this milestone effort to tackle the impending global food crisis were former US President Bill Clinton, Sir Bob Geldof, World Bank President Robert Zoellick, Howard G. Buffett, WFP Ambassador and son of Warren Buffett, Neville Isdell, Chairman of the Coca Cola Company, Lord Michael Hastings of KPMG, Craig Barrett, Chairman of Intel Corporation, Carl-Henric Svanberg, CEO of Ericsson, and Guy Sebban, President of the International Chamber of Commerce.

The presentation by Hayleys followed the opening address by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and focused on the outcome expected from that afternoon’s roundtable discussion on Water Access and Management with respect to food sustainability, pledges from businesses to greater water resources stewardship, and commitments to a concise UN framework to more effectively mobilise private sector engagement in contributing to Millennium Development Goals, Hayleys said.

Sri Lanka’s high profile involvement in these deliberations stems from the Hayleys Group’s commitment to the UNGC and the Group’s role as one of the first 10 international corporate signatories to the CEO Water Mandate, a special initiative of the United Nations Global Compact launched by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in July 2007. As one of the Year-One Signatories of this initiative, Hayleys, whose large manufacturing facilities consume an estimated 8,500 cubic metres of water per day, is committed to give leadership to efforts to secure local corporate sector pledges to make water resources management a priority.