Mumbai, Dec 6 (KNN) London-based Inclusive Trade Ltd, a firm that certifies sustainable products is considering to launch its sustainability verification system on a pilot basis in India to support at least 1,500 MSMEs and women entrepreneurs.

The firm’s Founder & CEO Rupa Ganguli said that the tool-kit in the first phase will verify business practices across key UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), viz. Gender Equality (Goal 5), Responsible Production and Consumption (Goal 12) and Climate Action (Goal 13).

She was speaking at a workshop on ‘Promoting MSMEs and Women Entrepreneurs through Sustainability in Global Markets’ jointly organized by MVIRDC World Trade Center Mumbai and All India Association of Industries.

“Our methodology aims to eliminate unsubstantiated claims about sustainability (a phenomenon known as ‘greenwashing') and enable trust between consumers and brands globally,” Ganguli said, whose institution has so far positively impacted 4500 beneficiaries globally.

She said that there are around 95 million consumers across parts of Europe, including UK, Scandinavia, Switzerland and Germany looking for sustainable products in home décor, fashion, corporate gifting and textile segments with an estimated corporate procurement of USD 1 trillion.

Ganguli advised Indian MSMEs to capture data on the impact of their business process on promoting women’s livelihood, reducing carbon emission, waste management, energy conservation and other sustainability goals.

Speaking on this occasion, Rupa Naik, Executive Director, WTC Mumbai reaffirmed the commitment of WTC Mumbai to promote adoption of UN Sustainable Development Goals by MSMEs and women owned enterprises in the country.

This was the first workshop conducted by WTC Mumbai to enable MSMEs and women entrepreneurs to benefit from this sustainability toolkit and further aims to connect with European corporate buyers.  (KNN Bureau)