? 09-11 June 2020 ? 10.00-16.30 (Bangkok time)
Online conference
To stimulate a robust dialogue on responsible business and human rights in Asia and the Pacific in the COVID-19 context, the UN has joined forces to co-organize the United Nations Virtual Forum on Business and Human Rights: New Challenges. New Approaches, Asia and the Pacific (VRBHR Forum).
In 2020, the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights (UNWG), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), International Labour Organisation (ILO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) have joined forces to provide further stimulus to the responsible business and human rights discourse in Asia and the Pacific.
Since 2016, representatives from governments, NHRIs, CSOs, and business have convened as part of an annual regional forum on Business and Human Rights in Asia. This annual regional platform has proven instrumental in building momentum in Asia and fostering a race-to-the-top for the implementation of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs)and other international standards such as the ILO Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy (MNE Declaration). As a vital platform for the sharing of best practices from within Asian countries and beyond, the platform has enabled meaningful South-South exchange and facilitated constructive dialogue and peer-learning among international organisations, ministerial-level officials, corporate executives, and civil society actors.
Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, the VRBHRForum will convene stakeholders in the Asia-Pacific region to take stock of progress and discuss challenges and opportunities for advancing responsible business and human rights in the region. It will explore how existing vulnerabilities have been amplified and exposed by the crisis and discuss the need to view the crisis as an opportunity to drive change and build back better.
The Forum aims to:
- Track the progress made by governments in implementing the UNGPs and assess the drivers for and challenges in promoting responsible business conduct in Asia and the Pacific, especially as the region is entering the COVID-19 recovery phase;
- Explore how governments and businesses can collaborate on post-COVID-19 recovery, building back stronger, more sustainable, more resilient and with a focus on responsible business practices;
- Raise awareness and build the capacity of various stakeholders around responsible business and human rights issues and standards;
- Discuss how to rebuild the global economy after COVID-19 in ways that increases sustainability and resilience and leaves no-one behind;
- Share best practices undertaken by businesses in increasing environmental sustainability and ensuring respect for human rights, particularly in the context of COVID-19 and its impact on employment, production, and services;
- Facilitate learning and networking opportunities for CSOs and human rights defenders and evaluate how they can advocate for change and overcome barriers to access remedy; and
- Encourage peer-learning amongst States, businesses, industry associations, trade unions, CSOs, and NHRIs in Asia and thePacific, facilitating the regional exchange of good practices.
Original source: RBHR2020
Published on 05 June 2020
