Business and Human Rights Focus of Local Network Regional Meeting Asia/Oceania

(Dhaka, 11 December 2014) — The Global Compact Local Networks Regional Meeting Asia/Oceania concluded today in Dhaka. Hosted by the Global Compact Network Bangladesh, the meeting was attended by representatives from 13 Local Networks – the largest attendance to date – from Australia, Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Viet Nam.

In an opening ceremony, the Advisor to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, the Governor of the Central bank of Bangladesh and the Danish Ambassador each delivered remarks addressing the importance of sustainability and marking the UN Global Compact as a critical reference point for local companies to advance responsible business practices at national and global levels. In addition, the first Asian regional publication, Regional Leadership Through UN Global Compact Principles – a project led by the Global Compact Network India in collaboration with various Local Networks – was launched to showcase best practices from the region and highlight common priority areas on which the networks can work collectively in the future.

Additional discussions featured Local Network updates on efforts to engage small and medium-sized enterprises, the proposed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and latest developments in Local Network governance and logo policy. The final day of the meeting enabled Local Networks to provide inputs on the Local Network Progression Model, Engagement Framework, Local Network Management Toolkit and Local Network Award criteria.

Also requested by Local Networks, a Business and Human Rights training today helped to build networks’ capacity on the UN Global Compact approach to human rights and expectations of corporate participants, including how Global Compact human rights commitments relate to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. Local Networks shared best practices on how they engage participants to respect and support human rights, and representatives participated in an interactive exercise to analyze potential human rights dilemmas. Representatives from two local companies in different sectors with operations and value chains in Asia presented their perspectives and challenges they face with regards to their human rights policies, processes and initiatives.

Local Network Exchange Programme

Ahead of the regional meeting, the 6th Local Network Exchange Programme took place. Co-organized by the UN Global Compact and the Global Compact Network Bangladesh, the three-day programme was attended by representatives from Local Networks in India, Malaysia, Myanmar and Turkey.

The exchange programme focused on knowledge-sharing on network management across regional boundaries. Attendees participated in practical working sessions related to network governance and activities, integrity measures, collective action and policy dialogue. Additional trainings and discussions covered topics such as reporting, creating effective partnerships, activity planning for 2015, as well as new growth and funding strategies.

Representatives from the Bangladesh Government, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Ministry of Industry, and Bangladesh Bank led a session on the role of Government in promoting and enabling corporate sustainability at the national level, and facilitated discussions among participants on how to engage multi-stakeholders in policy dialogue.

Participants also met with the Global Compact Network Bangladesh Steering Committee on the importance of local ownership to advance and implement Global Compact initiatives in a national context. Local Networks serve an essential role in rooting the Global Compact’s issue platforms and campaigns within different national, cultural and language contexts and will continue to be fundamental in broadening the corporate sustainability movement and strengthening capacity for implementation at the national and local levels.

• Download Regional Leadership Through UN Global Compact Principles
• Learn more about Global Compact Local Networks
• Read about Human Rights and Business, and watch a Bloomberg TV interview with UN Global Compact Executive Director Georg Kell on the business case for human rights

Contacts

Walid Nagi
Head of Local Networks
UN Global Compact
nagi@un.org

Ryo Kobayashi
Regional Networks Manager, Asia/Oceania
UN Global Compact
kobayashi@unglobalcompact.org