CSR fulfillment promotes sustainable development of ICT industry

 

Xiong Huajun, Deputy Secretary-General and Secretary-General of Social Responsibility Working Committee of China Electronics Standardization Association

 
As an important field of the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, Information and Communications Technology (ICT), as an important driving force to promote the deep integration of informatization and industrialization, plays a more prominent strategic, fundamental and leading role in the national economy and society development, and has become the commanding height of international competition.

In the past 70 years since the founding of the People's Republic of China, especially in the past 40 years since the reform and opening up, China's ICT industry has been developing rapidly. Its industrial structure has been constantly optimized and its industrial strength has been continuously enhanced, which has effectively promoted the process of new industrialization, informatization, urbanization and agricultural modernization in China, and continuously led social innovation and transformation.

Today, ICT products and services are changing rapidly. Artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, Internet of Things, 5G and other new technologies profoundly change people's production and lifestyle. At the same time, new issues such as energy conservation, environmental protection, climate change, privacy protection and data security are attracting increasing attention. ICT enterprises are facing many social responsibility risks in the process of operation.

The development of social responsibility has become the internal demand of enterprises to enhance their soft power and “going global”. It is an important work to promote the transformation and upgrading of ICT industry and the high-quality development. It is also a powerful measure to build a strong manufacturing country and a strong cyber power in the new era.
 

 
For a long time, under the guidance of the Department of Policies and Regulations of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), we have followed the working principle of "led by the government, guided by the industry, dominated by enterprises and social participation", and jointly promoted the social responsibility development of the ICT industry. With standardization work as the main line, we strive to build services such as report release, communication and promotion, self-declaration, industry think tank, international cooperation and poverty alleviation.

We actively promote the research and development of social responsibility standards and tools. Focusing on what "social responsibility" is, "how to do it", "how to introduce it" and "how to comment it", and constantly improve the standard system of industrial social responsibility, enhance the awareness and ability of social responsibility and promote the standardized social responsibility work. We actively deepen international cooperation, promote mutual trust and integration of social responsibility standards, and promote international and inter-industry dialogue, communication and cooperation on social responsibility. We actively strengthen industry research, and carry out the construction of social responsibility think tank and practice base by focusing on the work focus of the MIIT as well as promote the research and service of key industrial CSR social responsibility issues. We actively explore the demonstration and pilot promotion, carry out excellent social responsibility practice collection and establishment of innovative enterprise with CSR values, promote CSR self-declaration and wider social responsibility practice, so as to promote social responsibility work in an all-round way, be a better social responsibility promoter, service provider and builder, and constantly promote the improvement of CSR management level.
 

 
 

Since 2013, we have successfully held the seven sessions of China’s ICT Industry CSR Annual Summit, which serves as a platform for centralized release and summary of social responsibility reports for the industry. We widely cooperate with brands, promote upstream and downstream enterprises in the industrial chain to jointly carry out CSR work, and continuously promote the overall improvement of social responsibility governance level in ICT industry, which has brought wide impact with good reviews. In May this year, China’s ICT Sustainable Development and CSR Think Tank was included in the think tank alliance of MIIT and will provide a strong intellectual support for our further social responsibility work.

With the rapid development of ICT industry, social responsibility work needs to keep pace with the times. We will actively explore new ways and methods to strengthen the social responsibility development in the new era, seize the key issues of social responsibility in the ICT industry and enhance the social responsibility work in a deeper, more solid and refined manner. We will speed up the pace of social responsibility development with a high sense of responsibility and mission, and constantly push the governance level of social responsibility in the ICT industry to a new height in the new era.
 

 
To actively fulfill social responsibility is a glorious mission and great responsibility. We call on the ICT enterprises to accelerate the industry development and pay more attention to social responsibility fulfillment in technological innovation, energy saving and environmental protection, quality brand, work safety, community participation, supply chain management, etc. We will adapt ourselves to and lead the new normal, accelerate the transformation of production mode, promote the sustainable and high quality development of the industry and the “Belt and Road” cooperation, and continue to contribute to building China into a manufacturing power, cyber power, and the community of shared future for mankind.

The People's Republic of China has gone through 70 glorious years. The brilliant picture of the future needs the flourishing and sustainable development of all walks of life and it needs more social responsibility powers to push together.

(Translated by GoldenBee, the Chinese version of this article is issued on China Sustsinability Tribune wechat account)
(Images in this article are from the Internet)