U/S Jeffery - Corporate Social Responsibility Discussions

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 002617

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E.O. 12598: N/A
TAGS: ECON EAID EINV PGOV ID
SUBJECT: U/S Jeffery - Corporate Social Responsibility Discussions
with GE and Citi


1. (SBU) Summary. Two prominent U.S.-headquartered companies briefed
Under Secretary Jeffery on their integration of corporate social
responsibility (CSR) into their overall business plans for
Indonesia. GE and Citi both said CSR activities in Indonesia are
tightly integrated with their corporate values and further their
bottom line. Ambassador Hume also used the occasion to recognize
both companies for their selection as finalists in the Secretary of
State's Award for Corporate Excellence. End Summary.

GE Indonesia
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2. (SBU) GE Southeast Asia President Stuart Dean told Under
Secretary Jeffery on September 10 that General Electric views CSR as

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the right thing to do morally, but that it is also an important way
for U.S. companies to level the playing field in countries with high
levels of corruption. Dean said they can cement partnerships
without bribes by showing concrete benefits to their host nation.
Dean said that GE volunteers have donated over one million hours of
service in Indonesia. They committed over 5,000 hours of volunteer
effort to re-building homes in partnership with Habitat for Humanity
as part of tsunami relief efforts in Aceh. The company and
employees worldwide together donated more than $20 million for
tsunami relief with half of those donations going to Indonesia. GE

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also gave the Government of Indonesia (GOI) portable water treatment
systems in Aceh, as well as medical diagnostic equipment.


3. (SBU) Dean spotlighted a unique CSR activity that GE undertakes
all over the world to provide in-kind contributions of equipment and
expertise for night lighting projects for world landmarks. In
Indonesia, the GE team created a visually stunning light design for
the ancient temple complex at Borobudur in Yogyakarta. Dean
expressed pride in GE's long-time support for Special Olympics in
Indonesia. He singled out for special mention, however, the
entrepreneurship program that their Indonesian employees created to
help disadvantaged youths, including high school drop outs. More
than 2,000 young people have received the benefit of training and a
revolving fund to help start businesses. Looking to the future,
Dean said GE will be focusing its community engagement on financial
literacy for underprivileged women, HIV-AIDS awareness, combating
bullying in schools, and raising environmental awareness among young
people.

Citi Indonesia
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4. (SBU) On September 11, Citi Indonesia Senior Vice President
Ditta Amahorseya provided U/S Jeffery with a detailed overview of
Citi's CSR program in Indonesia. She said Citi's CSR strategy makes
an impact in four ways by: maintaining their profitability in
country, providing a stable employment source for Indonesians,
engaging in philanthropy, and assisting Indonesia in promoting
sustainable financial development. Citi CSR programs range from
simple activities like allowing their employees to take one day off
every year to engage in philanthropic work to more elaborate
programs such as providing financial education and extending grants
to socially responsible and innovative micro-entrepreneurs and
small- and medium-sized enterprises.


5. (SBU) Citi Indonesia's education programs include $500 grants
for teachers with creative teaching programs, a semester-long
university course in banking at University of Indonesia, and the
distribution of financial education materials to fifth and sixth
graders to expose them to money management concepts. Citi Indonesia
also works with the Central Bank of Indonesia to provide financial
skills to potential borrowers in poor communities. In an effort to
build a culture of strong nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in
Indonesia, Citi provides management training to local NGOs to
enhance their budget and project planning capacity. Citi Indonesia
also provides assistance for natural disasters. Citi programs in
Banda Aceh included the building of 300 new homes and several school
facilities. In addition, Citi followed the rebuilding program with
microfinance activities in the same villages to allow tsunami
survivors to start new businesses. Citi has contributed almost $3
million their CSR programs and they plan to continue expanding these
initiatives, according to Ditta.

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6. (U) Ambassador Hume also used the occasion of U/S Jeffery's visit
to recognize both companies for their selection as finalists in the
Secretary of State's Award for Corporate Excellence. Ambassador

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Hume thanked both companies for their good work in Indonesia and
presented a commemorative plaque, honoring their status as
finalists. In his remarks at GE, the ambassador noted GE's planned
engagement on HIV/AIDS. He said he was disturbed to hear that the
infection rate projections for Papua are converging with those of
Africa and urged GE to consider focusing its efforts there.


7. (U) U/S Jeffery cleared this cable.

HUME