The Hong Kong Productivity Council on Wednesday said small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) need to be more aware of the environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards used to evaluate a company's sustainability.

The council's chief technology officer, Dr Lawrence Cheung, said some SMEs neglect the social and governance aspects of ESG.

"Even for the environmental side, a lot of them may not know what kind of standards are available around internationally," he said.

"So a lot of them may just feel that they can just put some simple environmental measures and that would achieve a certain level of ESG."

Cheung said the council will hold personnel training courses as most SMEs lack the expertise to introduce ESG measures.

"Particularly a lot of exporters which are SMEs, more and more their buyers are demanding some sort of ESG elements in their operations," he said.

A new AI tool will also be introduced to help SMEs assess their ESG measures and compare their efforts with others in the industry.

"If they have some ESG elements particularly on the governance side, it actually gives them a lot more confidence in the eyes of investors, customers as well as the buyers," Cheung said.

Source: RTHK

香港生產力促進局(生產力局)於2024年1月推出「ESG一站通」（ESG One)平台，透過整合評估工具、技術支援及培訓資源，為中小企業提供端到端可持續發展解決方案。配合新成立的「資源循環技術研究中心」，雙軌並行協助企業將 ESG 理念深度融入營運核心。

生產力局首席技術總監張梓昌今日透露，平台推出年半已吸引逾1200間企業，其中中小企佔比高達95%，並獲約190間機構支持。

張梓昌分析指出，當前中小企實踐 ESG 正面臨四大關鍵挑戰，分別為缺乏專業知識科技與資源、數據收集與報告困難、資金與成本壓力，以及對市場認知及曝光不足。

對此，他提出六點以全方位支持中小企的 ESG 轉型。六大核心支柱分別為 ESG 評估與藍圖規劃、數位信任與管治、專業 ESG 諮詢、綠色科技探索、資助計劃及人才培訓與商務機遇。

生產力局綠色生活與創新部總經理蔡劍虹進一步分享平台數據指出，在約1200間參與自我評估的中小企中，橫跨18個行業的企業於「商業道德」、「勞工權益」及「客戶責任」三大範疇表現突出。

其中，「商業道德」中有93%企業制定反貪腐政策，77%建立舉報人保護機制；「勞工實踐」中有91%企業設有勞動保障政策，84%提供基本員工醫療支援；「客戶責任」中亦有95%建立投訴處理系統，82%實施透明產品保固條款 。

針對中小企資源限制，張梓昌強調將採取「認知賦能」、「能力建構」、「技術落地」三階段支援策略，包括開辦 ESG 實務工作坊、提供國際標準認證培訓，以及協助企業申請綠色科技研發基金，全面降低轉型障礙。 

資料來源: 匯港通訊

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