SDG 9.2 Sustainable business
- Dutch companies have enough opportunities to make their production processes, energy consumption and value chains more sustainable. Fifteen percent of small and medium-sized businesses saw access to financing as their main problem in 2023, the smallest share in the EU. The contribution of the environmental goods and services sector to GDP and employment is trending upwards.
- Dutch companies are using increasingly sustainable production processes. The economy is becoming less and less energy intensive: companies use less and less energy to produce value added. Dutch domestic material consumption is lower than in most other EU countries, and the trend is stable.
- Greenhouse gas emissions and economic growth have been decoupled: emissions are decreasing while the Dutch economy is growing. As a result, the greenhouse gas intensity of the economy is decreasing steadily.
- Trust in banks has increased substantially in recent years. Trust in large companies is stable: just over one third of the population have a lot of faith in large companies.
Dashboard and indicators
Resources and opportunities
in EU
in 2023
in EU
in 2020
in EU
in 2022
Use
in EU
in 2022
in EU
in 2022
Outcomes
in EU
in 2020
in EU
in 2022
Subjective assessment
in EU
in 2017
| Theme | Indicator | Value | Trend | Position in EU | Position in EU ranking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resources and opportunities | SME access to finance | 15% experiences finance as an obstacle in 2023 | 1st out of 27 in 2023 | High ranking | |
| Resources and opportunities | Value added of the environmental goods and services sector A) | 4.4% of gross domestic product in current prices in 2023 | increasing (increase well-being) | 5th out of 27 in 2020 | High ranking |
| Resources and opportunities | Employment in the environmental goods and services sector A) | 2.9% of total employment in 2023 | increasing (increase well-being) | ||
| Resources and opportunities | Sustainability reporting in annual report | 90% of top 100 companies reported on sustainability in 2022 | 8th out of 20 in 2022 | Middle ranking | |
| Use | Energy intensitity of the economy | 97.6 kg oil equivalents per 1,000 euros of GDP (2015 prices) in 2022 | decreasing (increase well-being) | 9th out of 27 in 2022 | Middle ranking |
| Use | Domestic material consumption | 10 tonne per capita in 2022 | 3rd out of 27 in 2022 | High ranking | |
| Outcomes | Value added of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) | 60.0% of value added of the non-financial sector in 2022 | 8th out of 23 in 2020 | Middle ranking | |
| Outcomes | Greenhouse gas intensity of the economy A) | 0.23 kg CO2 equivalents per euro of GDP (2015 prices) in 2023 | decreasing (increase well-being) | 8th out of 27 in 2022 | Middle ranking |
| Outcomes | Labour income share market sector | 73.7% of national income is allocated to labour in the market sector in 2022 | |||
| Subjective assessment | Satisfaction with working conditions (employed) B) | 77.9% of employed aged 15-74 are satisfied or very satisfied in 2023 | |||
| Subjective assessment | Trust in large companies | 35.8% of the population over 15 have a (fairly) high level of trust in 2023 | |||
| Subjective assessment | Trust in banks | 50.0% of the population over 15 have a (fairly) high level of trust in 2023 | increasing (increase well-being) | 11th out of 27 in 2017 | Middle ranking |
Colour codes and notes to the dashboards in the Monitor of Well-being
The topics covered by SDG 9 are quite comprehensive and can be broken down into three main components: infrastructure and mobility, sustainable business, and knowledge and innovation. This second dashboard for SDG 9 focuses on strengthening businesses and making them more sustainable. Small businesses should ideally have easier access to high-value markets and to financing opportunities. The SDG agenda contains indicators relevant to corporate social responsibility (CSR) and to business activity in developed countries such as the Netherlands. In a developed economy like that of the Netherlands, the main topics in this context are employer-employee relations, the role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large corporations, and sustainable production processes and products. Some topics on the SDG agenda are less relevant to the Netherlands, such as increasing the share of manufacturing in the economy.
Resources and opportunities describe options for businesses to make their production processes, energy consumption and value chains more sustainable. All indicators show a favourable trend from the perspective of well-being.
Use concerns companies’ efforts to make production processes, energy use and value chains more sustainable.
Outcomes refer to actual sustainability of production processes and value chains. SDG 9 advocates easier access for small companies to high-value markets and to financing opportunities.
Subjective assessment provides a picture of how satisfied workers are with their working conditions and how much trust people place in banks and large corporations.