UN Global Compact Helps Connect Respect for Human Rights and Sustainable Development Goals at Annual Forum on Business & Human Rights

(Geneva, 18 November 2015) – To mark the historic adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the UN Global Compact led the development of a statement endorsed by 10 global business organizations affirming that the implementation of the UN Guiding Principles is a key vehicle for business to contribute to inclusive and peaceful societies everywhere.

The Forum was chaired by Diana Chavez, Executive Director of the Latin America and Caribbean Support Center of the UN Global Compact, and the first woman to chair the Forum.  Key speakers included UN Global Compact Executive Director, Lise Kingo and UN Global Compact Board Member Linda Kromjong. In her remarks, Lise Kingo remarked, “To ensure business contributes to rather than undermines sustainable development, we must see the corporate responsibility to respect human rights as a critical component of business’ role in the SDGs.”

The UN Global Compact co-organized several sessions to bring the voice of responsible business to multi-stakeholder discussions. Sessions focused on migrant workers and exploitative practices such as retaining identity documents and charging recruitment fees; effective company-level grievance mechanisms; empowering women in Africa's fashion industry and tools and approaches to fight child labour.

A meeting of the UN Global Compact Human Rights and Labour Working Group was also held, co-chaired by Philip Jennings, General Secretary, UNI Global Union and Linda Kromjong, Secretary-General, International Organization of Employers. Over 2,300 participants from 130 countries gathered at the fourth annual Forum on Business and Human Rights, hosted by the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights. Twenty-two per cent of participants came from the business sector, the largest percentage to-date.

About the Forum on Business and Human Rights

Established by the Human Rights Council and guided by the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights, the Forum provides a global platform to explore progress on the implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. This year’s forum focused on multi-stakeholder dialogue, tracking & measuring progress, national action plans on business & human rights, and access to effective remedy.

• View the business statement supporting the UN Guiding Principles and the SDGs
• View all events for the United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights 
• Learn more about the UN Global Compact’s work to advance the business contribution to human rights
• Review the relationship between the UN Global Compact human rights commitments and the UN Guiding Principles