The Institute for Human Rights and Business will soon release a human rights review of the Global Compact. Mary Robinson asks for stakeholder ideas as to how the Compact may become better attuned to human rights concerns
The Institute for Human Rights and Business will soon release a human rights review of the Global Compact. Mary Robinson asks for stakeholder ideas as to how the Compact may become better attuned to human rights concerns
United Nations Special Representative on Business and Human Rights, John Ruggie, has released his latest report taking forward the “Protect, Respect, Remedy” policy framework for business and human rights.
In June, the Human Rights Council will discuss Ruggie’s report at its session in Geneva.
A few weeks later, the UN Global Compact – the world’s largest voluntary corporate citizenship initiative - will mark its 10th anniversary at its Leadership Summit in New York.
The challenge is for governments, business and other stakeholders to strategically align these key corporate responsibility initiatives in order to achieve their full potential in advancing greater respect for human rights.
The Global Compact, launched by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and a handful of major companies in 2000 has - despite criticisms by some about its actual impact on responsible business performance – played a key role in bringing human rights to an ever-widening business audience in all regions.
Companies committed to taking action on human rights now have an array of management tools, case studies and good practice notes developed by the Global Compact Human Rights Working Group to guide them.
At the same time, John Ruggie’s mandate has been pivotal in moving a once divisive debate on the nature and scope of the private sector’s human rights responsibilities onto a more constructive path.
The “Protect, Respect, Remedy” framework has put in place the long missing inter-governmental foundations needed to more effectively address business’ role in complex human rights challenges and clarify baseline expectations for corporate performance.
I have been associated with the Global Compact since its inception, first during my time as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and now as a member of its Advisory Board.
A critical but dedicated friend
I’ve been critical of the Global Compact at various stages along the way for not doing more to ensure that participating companies demonstrate tangible progress. But I consider myself a dedicated friend, committed to its continual improvement.
From my perspective, the Compact’s 10th anniversary is a perfect moment to consider proposals which build on its achievements and fully integrate into future strategies, lessons from John Ruggie’s developing work.
For example, the Special Representative’s recommendations around human rights due diligence – developing policies, assessing impacts, integrating into management systems, and tracking performance - must become a central part of Global Compact participating companies’ human rights commitments.
Similarly, the growing number of Global Compact Local Networks around the world should all become proactive disseminators of human rights good practice.
This is no small task. Networks will need greater UN support and the resources and tools necessary to engage with small and medium size companies in all regions as well as large companies from emerging markets that are a growing proportion of the Global Compact’s membership.
Other challenges confronting the Global Compact would benefit from being both strategically and substantially aligned with UN human rights mechanisms and the Protect, Respect, Remedy framework.
Such alignment could improve procedures for addressing allegations of corporate involvement in serious human rights abuses and could also lead to better integration of human rights principles and approaches into the growing number of initiatives emerging out the Global Compact.
The Institute for Human Rights and Business (www.institutehrb.org) is undertaking a number of important initiatives to support progress on these fronts.
One involves a state-of-play review of how human rights due diligence processes are being taken up by over 20 leading companies from different industry sectors.
We hope the findings from this process, to be launched at the Leaders Summit, will inform companies as they seek to match their commitment to the human rights principles of the Global Compact with tangible actions.
The Institute will also soon release a human rights review of the Global Compact to mark the occasion of its 10th anniversary.
It will seek to assess the overall impact of the Compact on human rights within the broader Corporate Responsibility movement and will make recommendations on how the Global Compact’s governance and strategic approach could be further developed to build on successes, address criticisms and achieve greater impact.
We welcome views from all stakeholders on this important subject which is critical to making the next decade one where human rights become part of mainstream business thinking and practice.
Mary Robinson is Chair of the Advisory Board of the Institute for Human Rights and Business and a member of the UN Global Compact Board. She was President of Ireland from 2000-2007 and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, from 1997 to 2002.
(www.institutehrb.org)