The Global Compact Office today (15 October 2002) announced the launch of a powerful Internet portal that is designed to promote on-line learning, dialogue and collaboration among global actors dedicated to advancing good corporate citizenship and responsible globalisation.
This is the first portal of its kind for the United Nations, said Georg Kell of the Executive Office of the Secretary-General. This establishes a powerful technology infrastructure to encourage the creation and sharing of critical content and information that is decentralized, thereby offering Global Compact participants from all over the world an opportunity to share activities and learn from others. For the national and local Global Compact networks that are springing up around the globe, this technology will give them a window on the world.
The Global Compact portal (www.unglobalcompact.org) provides a common user interface and an easily navigable framework for organizing, publishing and quickly locating relevant information. With the new technology, Global Compact participants can openly share experiences and case studies, while inviting comment and feedback in the spirit of continuous improvement. The technology will also give national and local networks of Global Compact participants, in the developed and developing world, a tool to showcase their actions, initiatives and learnings.

The portal was made possible thanks to the generous donation of services by SAP AG, a leading provider of e-business software solutions.

We expect this new portal to foster more efficient communication among business leaders and other global stakeholders, in both developed and developing countries, in the promotion of responsible business practices and sustainable development, said Mokhethi Moshoeshoe, Director of the African Institute of Corporate Citizenship, based in South Africa, an active participant in the Global Compact. This sort of communication is critical to encourage collaboration, dialogue and the dissemination of good practices.