How Business can Work with the United Nations
The UN offers businesses many ways to support its mission while creating valuable partnerships and pursuing new business opportunities. One is to compete in the procurement process and become UN vendors. Another is to assist in disaster response. The UN also encourages business to join the UN Global Compact, which affirms their adherence to several basic international mandates. For more information about business partnering with the UN, and examples of how companies work with the UN, see: http://business.un.org
The Public-Private Alliance Foundation promotes a business approach to development for poverty reduction and partnerships, and in support of all of the UN Millennium Development Goals. PPAF is a participant in the UN Global Compact.
Procurement
One way to become a vendor and gain access to the UN’s $6 billion international market is to take advantage of the “one-step, fully on-line” registration process of the UN Global Marketplace. This registers businesses with 21 agencies, funds and programs and the UN Secretariat, which represent over 95% of the UN procurement program’s expenditures.
Large contracts make the headlines, but the UN also relies on small businesses to support its operations. To encourage small business participation, the UN offers a tiered contract system based on contract size – ranging from under $200,000 to over $5 million – with reduced compliance requirements for smaller contracts.
The UN Global Marketplace guide “Doing Business with the UN System” outlines the process.
Disaster Response
A business can partner with the UN in disaster response as a paid service provider or by making donations.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) produces “How Can My Company Help?” This page explains the role of businesses in disaster response, as well as methods of giving.
Cash is always the preferred type of donation, as it allows the UN to direct resources to the most immediate need, but in-kind donations are accepted so long as they meet current emergency needs. In all cases, donated goods and services must be aligned with the goals of the UN.
Businesses can also donate expertise by providing full-time employees with needed skills to UN agencies, and can facilitate individual giving through employee donation programs.
OCHA encourages businesses to develop their ability to respond to future disasters, especially by creating long-term partnerships with emergency relief organisations. OCHA also encourages support after the initial disaster passes, as reconstruction often costs ten or more times the cost of the initial response.
The UN Global Compact
The UN Global Compact is a public-private initiative that joins businesses with the UN to make commitments to sustainability and corporate citizenship in four core areas: human rights, labor, the environment and anti-corruption. By signing the Compact, businesses agree to implement and promote ten universal principles and to make annual contributions according to revenue-based guidelines.
Participating in the Compact allows businesses to contribute to the creation of a “more sustainable and inclusive global economy,” as well as to enjoy the benefits of partnering with the UN, governments, civil society, labor, and other non-business interests to develop best practices and implement an “established and globally recognized policy framework for the development.”
