The UN Human Rights Council made a wise decision when establishing the Forum on Business and Human Rights. The task was to serve as a key global platform for stakeholders to ”discuss trends and challenges in the implementation of the Guiding Principles and promote dialogue and cooperation on issues linked to business and human rights.”
In the course of a few years, the Forum has become the most important international venue for addressing business and human rights. This is of course a testimony to the convening power of the UN, but also to the fact that business, governments and civil society have a need to discuss issues concerning business and human rights at a common platform.
The Agenda 2030 with the Sustainable Development Goals craves responsible business conduct because the private sector has a great impact on people’s lives and hopes for the future.
A natural extension of the Forum is to offer more regional opportunities for the same exchanges across stakeholders. The Guiding Principles are universal, but their implementation is local.
We welcome the decision of the organizers to give women the voice at the opening session in this year’s Forum. We also welcome the decision to focus on access to remedy for business-related human rights impacts – the third pillar of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
We find it important that the necessary resources are made available for the Annual Forum on Business and Human Rights to continue being a success story