Workshop for ESG risk management and compliance with the requirements of ESG regulations – Metal Processing Industry
October 20, 2023 | Smederevo
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, with the support of the German Organization for International Cooperation GIZ, launched the Responsible Business Hub RBH customer service for all domestic companies that export to the German market or plan to do so in the future. The goal of this customer service is to provide support to companies in Serbia to understand and properly work on the implementation of the German Act on Due Diligence in Supply Chains, as well as on all other regulations in the field of the green agenda.
According to the new German law that entered into force on January 1st this year, domestic companies that are in the supply chains of German companies have the obligation of due diligence through the following activities:
- Establishing a risk management system
- Resolving internal jurisdiction in the company
- Conducting regular risk analyses
- Giving a statement of principles
- Establishing preventive measures in the sphere of own business and towards direct suppliers
- Taking corrective measures
- Documentation and reporting
In order to promote the importance of risk management and analysis in every company, we organized consulting workshops for companies from several different industries. We introduced the present companies to the principles of risk analysis, the importance of quality risk management, and the importance of appointing a responsible person within the company.
During the workshops, the participants had the opportunity to apply the learned concepts of risk management by conducting a short analysis of the company's exposure to risks in the field of environmental protection and human rights under the professional supervision of Deloitte experts.
As a result of the workshops, we received an overview of the most important risks for each of the five sectors and created a plan for further activities.
In the framework of the fourth workshop, we brought together the Metal Processing Industry Section from the Braničevo and Podunava Administrative Districts and the Nišava, Pirot, and Toplica Administrative Districts. The companies presented to us what are the common risks they face in their companies and what are the requirements related to ESG standards that companies from Germany require from them. What they recognized as an important risk is certainly the availability and price of energy sources, the availability and price of natural resources, and the problem of waste management. They are faced with a lack of professional staff and a lack of interest by workers for additional education. The risk for their business is also the fluctuation of orders and the delay of supplier deliveries.
