Sixteen GCC business leaders have joined the board of the ‘Pearl Initiative’ – a private sector programme to promote corporate transparency, accountability and sustainability.

Operating in cooperation with the United Nations Office for Partnerships, the initiative brings together business leaders to train and educate future leaders on the importance of corporate and personal social responsibility, said a statement from KPMG, a global professional services firm.

Board members held their inaugural meeting in the UAE last week where members discussed strategies to champion and enhance corporate governance, public reporting and accounting practices.

According to Jamal Fakhro, who is both a Pearl Initiative board member and the managing partner of KPMG in Bahrain and Qatar, the initiative will help play an important role in recognising and promoting good corporate practices.

“The Pearl Initiative will help create a culture of accountability and transparency and provides a platform for private sector partners to develop and be recognised for their achievements in corporate social responsibility,” said Fakhro.

Badr Jafar, the Pearl Initiative's co-initiator added: 'The strength of the Pearl Initiative is demonstrated by the fact that it is a real private sector initiative, for business by business, to create a more transparent and prosperous business environment in the GCC. We are fortunate enough to have representation in our board from every GCC country and consider this essential in our goal to catalyse and increase economic activity in the entire GCC.'

Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education of the UAE is the Pearl Initiative's honorary chairman. Prominent business leaders who form the board include Abdulla Mazrui, chairman of Mazrui Holdings; Arif Naqvi, vice chairman and CEO of Abraaj Capital; Varouj Nerguizian, CEO of the Bank of Sharjah; Riad Sadiq, chairman of Al Habtoor Leighton Group; Sheikh AbdulazizHamad Al-Jomaih, managing director of Investments for Al-Jomaih Group; Sheikh Khalid Al-Rajhi, CEO of Rajhi Partners; Fahad Al-Turki, executive vice president of ATCO Group; Rashad Al-Zubair, vice-chairman and managing director of The Zubair Corporation; Helal Saeed Al Marri, director general of Dubai World Trade Center; Amir Dossal, founder and chairman of Global Partnerships Forum and co-initiator of the Pearl Initiative; Warwick Hunt, managing partner of the Middle East region of PricewaterhouseCoopers; Hamid Jafar of the Crescent Group of Companies; Badr Jafar, executive director of Crescent Petroleum and co-initiator of the Pearl Initiative; Fadi Ghandour, CEO of Aramex; and Samir Khoury, executive vice president of CCC. – TradeArabia News Service