Odebrecht Creates Advisory Council To Support The Group’s Governance And Sustainability

Odebrecht S.A. announced the creation of a Global Advisory Council (GAC) to support the governance and development of the group’s companies in areas such as corporate citizenship, sustainability and anti-corruption. Linked to the Company’s Board of Directors, the Global Advisory Council includes thought leaders from Brazil and various other countries who work in civil society organizations, academia and the private sector.

The Advisory Council is formed by members of international organizations that are references in business development, sustainability and combating corruption.

The new Council will meet for the first time next week, in São Paulo. The agenda includes working meetings with the Executive Board of Odebrecht S.A., the holding company of the Odebrecht Group, and a seminar in which 180 of the group’s business leaders from around the globe will participate. The main topics to be discussed in the seminar are the role of companies in society, the factors of long-term success and how to compete in challenging environments while upholding integrity, high ethical standards and transparency.

The creation of GAC is part of Odebrecht’s transformation that began with its decision, in March 2016, to collaborate fully with authorities and with the public commitment it undertook to act always with ethics, integrity and transparency.

“The Advisory Council will bring to the group a very rich set of international experiences that will be useful in day-to-day activities,” said Sergio Foguel, a member of the Board of Directors of Odebrecht S.A. and chairman of the new Council. The group’s executives also will be able to consult councilmembers for advice on any specific situations they face.

The rules for the Advisory Council’s functioning include holding at least two annual meetings, during which its members will hold working meetings with the Executive Board of Odebrecht S.A. and a seminar with leaders from the entire group.

Members of the GAC include: Claudio Valladares-Padua, Co-founder and vice-president of the Ecological Research Institute (IPÊ), Georg Kell, President of Arabesque Partners and the founding Executive Director of the United Nations Global Compact, the world’s largest voluntary initiative for corporate sustainability. Jermyn Brooks, Chair, Business Advisory Board of Transparency International (TI) and the Steering Committee of the Siemens Integrity Initiative conducted by TI. Lynn S. Paine, Professor and former Senior Associate Dean at Harvard Business School (HBS). Mark Moody-Stuart, Chairman of the Global Compact Foundation and Vice-Chairman of the UN Global Compact. Newton de Souza, Vice-chairman of the Board of Directors and formed Chief Executive Officer of Odebrecht S.A. (2015-2017).

Others include: Rubens Ricúpero, A member of the Board of Directors of Odebrecht S.A. since 2004. He served as Brazilian Minister of Finance and Minister of Environment. From 1995 to 2004, he served as Secretary General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), in Geneva. Sergio Foguel, Member of the Board of Directors of Odebrecht S.A., chairman of the Global Advisory Council and coordinator of the company’s Compliance Committee. Tensie Whelan, Director of NYU Stern School of Business’s Center for Sustainable Business and former President of the Rainforest Alliance and Vinod Thomas, Professor at the University of Singapore and at the Asian Institute of Management.

In Ghana, Odebrecht Engineering and Constructions International adhere to international best practices in health, safety, well-being, corporate social responsibility and sustainability. Last year, the company was awarded CSR Engineering Company of the Year at the Ghana CSR Excellence Awards organised by the Centre for CSR, West Africa in partnership with notable organisations such as the Association of Ghana Industries, Chamber of Commerce and Industry and others.