Tele2 Pushing for New UN Sustainable Development Goals on Anti-Corruption

Tele2 AB, (Tele2), (NASDAQ OMX Stockholm: TEL2 A and TEL2 B) has together with the network Swedish Leadership for Sustainable Development, SLSD, pushed for goals regarding anti-corruption in the upcoming United Nation’s set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which succeeds the Millennium Development Goals.

Tele2 is a part of the Swedish network; SLSD, which has about 20 member companies, facilitated by Sida (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency). The network has made a commitment to individually and collectively work to reduce corruption, and to promote ethical business practices in countries where we operate.

Marie Baumgarts, Head of Corporate Responsibility, Tele2 AB, comments: "Since the Millenium Development Goals were launched over a decade ago, we have seen a lot of positive developments. However, within the network we felt that one significant challenge remained; goals regarding corruption. Corruption plays an important part in for example poverty and the discrimination of human rights. So within the network we decided to do something about it. When the original millennium goals were set, companies were practically not a part of the process at all. Today, we sit in the front row and are influential. That is what I call progress!”

A specific anti-corruption group, including Tele2 AB and Swedfund amongst others, was created. Together the representatives from the companies drafted a document emphasizing the importance of introducing goals regarding anti-corruption which subsequently went into the proposed post 2015 development agenda as sub goals. The sub goals state that member states of the UN shall "substantially reduce corruption and bribery in all its forms” and "develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels”. The post 2015 agenda is currently under negotiation and shall be adopted in New York on 25 September this year.

Charlotte Petri Gornitzka, Director General of Sida, comments: "The importance of private sector engagement for sustainable global development is increasingly being recognized, in Sweden as well as globally. Companies have great potential to address major challenges such as corruption. Sida is working actively to promote this through different models for private sector collaboration."

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