Keynote address by the Commonwealth Secretary-General at the International Chamber of Commerce United Kingdom 2025 Sustainability Conference - Sustainable Global Supply Chains: Turning Ambition into Action - on 10 June 2025.
It is an honour to join you today — at a moment that demands our full attention, our deepest resolve, and our boldest action. In five short years, we will arrive at 2030 — the deadline for the Sustainable Development Goals. It will mark a decade since the Paris Agreement came into force. And it will bring us just 25 years away from the global target of net zero.
This timeline is not theoretical. It is very real. And the truth is simple: we are not on track.
Despite extraordinary commitments and growing awareness, the gap between ambition and delivery is widening, and the pace of change is far below what is needed. We are entering a decisive window — one that will determine not just whether we meet our goals, but whether our children inherit a world worth living in.
So I thank the ICC — representing over 45 million companies and 1 billion employees — for convening this vital gathering. Because if the challenge is shared, so too must be the responsibility.
Around the world — in the mountains of Asia, the deltas of Africa, the coasts of the Caribbean and the islands of the Pacific — climate change is no longer a challenge for the future. It is the global threat we cannot ignore. It arrives as floods, storms, wildfires, and heatwaves. It shows up in supply chains that break down, insurance markets that pull out, and harvests that fail. And it falls hardest on those least responsible — the poorest communities, the most vulnerable nations; but it also sets back the ability of all our economies to generate growth and create prosperity.
Resilience is not just a lifeline for reversing vulnerability; it is the foundation for thriving businesses; jobs created and an expanding middle class and consumer market in the Commonwealth. That means, we cannot simply continue to pursue the half-measures with which we are managing our collective decline. This must be our moment for transformation. And here, we see a paradox: even as the risks grow, so does the opportunity. Because we are living not just in an age of crisis — but an age of extraordinary innovation, collaboration, and potential.
In every sector — energy, agriculture, transport, finance — breakthroughs are rewriting what’s possible. But innovation cannot just be about new technologies. It must also mean new partnerships, new business models, and new rules that consciously put people and planet at the heart of prosperity.
The challenge before us is not only to invent, but to scale, to share, and to deliver — at speed, and at scale. This is the decade that must turn pledges into progress — in lives improved, economies transformed, and nature restored.
The Commonwealth I serve as Secretary-General has a vital role to play in this transformation. We are 56 nations, home to one-third of humanity. We span every continent and ocean, every income level and climate zone. We include the largest and smallest economies, the youngest populations, and some of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries.
We are rich in natural resources, critical minerals, renewable energy, and human capital. We are connected by common language, legal frameworks, and values. This gives us an enormous comparative advantage — but also a deep collective responsibility. That is why, under my leadership, the Commonwealth is placing sustainability and innovation at the core of our agenda.
We are:
- Expanding access to climate finance, including through our Climate Finance Access Hub;
- Driving the Sustainable Energy Transition Agenda to support cleaner, fairer energy futures;
- Advancing digital trade and innovation ecosystems that empower youth, women, and entrepreneurs;
- And partnering with business — including many of you — to turn ideas into implementation.
This is what I will call the Commonwealth of Delivery — a practical, purposeful platform for action for the benefit of all our citizens. But friends, let us be honest: no government, no multilateral institution, no civil society organisation can do this alone. We need business. Not as a bystander, but as a builder of the future. You design the products, deploy the capital, shape the supply chains, and influence the norms that touch every part of life. Your choices — about where to invest, how to price, who to partner with, and what to prioritise — will ripple across generations. But it would also dynamize your bottom-line.
So I urge you:
Be ambitious in your strategies. Be global in your outlook. Be bold in your leadership.
And we, in turn, must be your partners — in shaping policies that are predictable and fair, in de-risking investment, and in creating the conditions for long-term, sustainable growth.
Friends, 2030 is in sight. 2050 is at stake. The clock is ticking — but the future is not yet written. It is a future that depends on whether we can summon the courage to act, the collaboration to deliver, and the conviction to lead. Not tomorrow. Not at the next COP. Not when it's easy.
But now. Here. Together. The Commonwealth stands ready. And we look to you — as business leaders — to help build a future that is rewarding for business and society alike—fair, secure, and sustainable.
Let us rise to this moment. Let us lead with urgency and purpose. And let us — truly — accelerate action for people, planet, and prosperity.
