According to the Suggestions of the CPC Central Committee on the Formulation of the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development, it is proposed to accelerate the comprehensive green transformation of economic and social developme

With five years left to achieve the 2030 carbon peak goal, the green transformation has become an irreversible trend of the times. During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, what are the key directions to promote China's ESG development? How do we evalua

During the ESG China Innovation Summit (2025) and the First ESG International Expo co-hosted by the China Enterprise Reform and Development Research Association and Shougang Group Corporation, Peng Huagang, the president of the research association a

He told the reporters from 21st Century Business Review that the fundamental logic of ESG is that businesses should not only focus on profits, but also consider the impacts on stakeholders such as government, communities, employees, partners, and sup

Central Enterprises' ESG Practice Needs to Implement "Whole-Chain Innovation"

What are the key directions for promoting China's ESG development during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period?

Peng Huagang: Beautiful China construction, the dual carbon goal, and new development concepts are all core topics of ESG. To promote ESG, enterprises must first fully understand and thoroughly study the spirit of the Central Committee, comprehensive

Finally, it is necessary to consolidate the responsibility of all employees. ESG is not only a top-down project but also an initiative involving all employees. ESG can only be truly implemented with the participation of everyone.

21st Century: What are the uniqueness and significance of the ESG practice of central enterprises compared with other enterprises?

Peng Huagang said that state-owned enterprises are the backbone of implementing national strategies. For all enterprises, it is necessary to actively learn and implement the requirements of the Party and the country, but for central enterprises, this

The 20th Plenary Session of the Fourth Central Committee of the Communist Party of China has passed the resolution on the 15th Five-Year Plan for economic and social development. New development concepts, high-quality development, new productive forc

In addition, central enterprises naturally play a leading role in social responsibility. State-owned enterprises and central enterprises have the state as their shareholder, and the state represents the people. It is their natural responsibility to b

This annual meeting proposes the concept of 'full-chain innovation'. We believe that central enterprises, large enterprises, and industry leaders should not only do well in ESG work themselves, but also drive the entire industry chain and ecosystem t

Integrate ESG into the Corporate Operating System

How can China's ESG standards align with international standards? How can Chinese companies play a role in the development of global ESG standards?

Peng Huagang: In recent years, there has been a significant improvement in the understanding, cognition and practice of ESG among various companies. ESG is not a Western language, but an international one. It was proposed by the United Nations to pro

The underlying logic of ESG is that businesses should not only strive for profits, but also consider the impacts on stakeholders such as government, communities, employees, partners, and suppliers during their operations. Based on this, we must thoro

International standards often start with information disclosure, such as 'disclose and do more based on what is disclosed', and evaluations of the same company by different rating agencies may vary.nFor example, MSCI focuses more on 'financial import

The underlying logic behind these differing perspectives is consistent, all aimed at promoting sustainable development. Businesses cannot solely focus on profits; they must also consider the impact on all stakeholders such as government, communities,

Based on this logic, the path for China's ESG to connect with the international community is quite clear

The first step is to fully understand both ends. It is necessary to delve deeply into international standards, such as the International Sustainable Benchmark Council (ISSB) standards, understand their core consensus, and also grasp the local needs o

The second step is to build a local standard system. In late 2024, the Ministry of Finance, jointly with nine other ministries and commissions, issued the "Enterprise Sustainable Disclosure Standards - Basic Standards", which are based on the Interna

The third step is to dynamically optimize the evaluation system. For example, when we updated the evaluation indicators for ESG reporting by Chinese listed companies this year, we significantly increased the proportion of "supply chain ESG management

Finally, I want to emphasize that doing ESG cannot be "biased". It is not a tool for companies to whitewash their image, nor is it a "stepping stone" for financing. It is to promote sustainable economic and social development by better fulfilling the

21st Century: How do you evaluate the green transformation of China's corporate supply chain and the development of ESG? If the 'chain leader' companies want to drive the improvement of the whole chain's ESG rating, how should they carry out their wo

Peng Huagang: The core of the whole chain is that enterprises not only need to do well in ESG themselves, but also need to promote ESG practices in the industrial chain, supply chain, and value chain. Currently, many companies' purchasing systems are

There are many good cases in China, such as Lenovo holding a supplier conference every year to promote suppliers to practice ESG; China Mobile is also communicating the ESG concept to suppliers through the supplier conference. Specifically, enterpris

21st Century: You have said in the practice of ESG that "big companies have questionnaires for big companies, and small companies have topics for small companies". In the current economic environment, is ESG still important to small and medium-sized

Peng Huagang: It is very important, for two reasons: first, small and medium-sized enterprises are an important force in promoting sustainable development, with a large number and wide range; second, in the future, industry chains and supply chains w

However, small and medium-sized enterprises indeed face difficulties. Their small operating scales and weak risk resistance, as well as their relatively limited ESG resources, make it too costly to engage in extensive ESG research. Therefore, our app

The platform will lower the ESG threshold, and enterprises only need to pay a low cost. Although answering questions requires effort, this process is itself a process of improving ESG capabilities. The ESG practice of small and medium-sized enterpris