CNBC, the world’s number one business and financial news network, brought its flagship feature show, Managing Asia, hosted by award-winning anchor Christine Tan, to Sunway City Kuala Lumpur for a special event focusing on sustainability. 

The invite-only event attended by 230 c-suite level participants was held in partnership with Sunway Group. Minister of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment & Climate Change YB Yeo Bee Yin and Minister of Water, Land and Natural Resources YB Dr Xavier Jayakumar were also present during the event.

YB Yeo Bee Yin said in her opening speech, “In the midst of climate change crisis, I want to encourage all of us to see this as an opportunity to develop a green economy that create jobs and wealth for the world. Over the last 8 months, we have announced new policies and directions. For example, we are aiming to achieve 20% renewable energy in our electricity generation mix by the year 2025. We are now only at 2% and there are plenty of opportunities out there for those who are interested in Renewable Energy. We hope sustainable entrepreneurs and businesses will play a big part in achieving this goal with us.”

Managing Asia: Sustainable Entrepreneurship include a discussion on social and environmental sustainability for businesses with Sunny George Verghese, Chairman of World Business Council for Sustainable Development & Co-founder and Group CEO of Olam International, Dr Delman Lee, President & Chief Technology Officer of TAL Group and Member of the Founding Circle, Sustainable Apparel Coalition and Nanette-Medved-Po, Founder of Generation Hope & Friends of Hope. 

Christine Tan also had a special interview with Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah AO, Founder and Chairman at Sunway Group as well as Sustainable Development Solution Network (SDSN) Malaysia Chairman. In the interview, Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah shared the Sunway’s challenges and efforts in advancing the sustainable development agenda, “The biggest challenge was to develop Sunway City Kuala Lumpur on an abandoned mining land. While most people saw this land as a moonscape, I had a different vision. My views on sustainability were shaped by my childhood years in a small town called Pusing in Malaysia’s Perak state. I witnessed first-hand the impact of poverty on families and how it closed off avenues for advancement, particularly in education, for the children.”

“I strongly believe that sustainability and profitability can go hand in hand, and that we can all do well by doing good. I hope Sunway’s efforts will inspire other corporations in the region to do more to advance the sustainable development agenda. We acknowledge that realising the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals is not the sole responsibility of Governments alone. It requires the commitment and collective effort of all sectors of society, the private sector, academia, civil society, and, of course, every single individual. We are all in this together.”