Human Rights and Business

The private sector is a strategic partner in the promotion and protection of human rights and the advancement of the 2030 Agenda in the region. From a perspective of shared responsibility, working hand in hand with companies, whether small, medium, or large, operating in various sectors, is a priority.

UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) has a focus area called "Human Rights and Businesses," aimed at consolidating partnerships between governments and the private sector to promote poverty reduction, the creation of decent jobs, and inclusive growth, with reference to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights adopted in 2011 by the UN Human Rights Council.

 

What do we do at UNDP?

• Generating knowledge that allows for innovative and effective solutions to sustainable development challenges through business activities and initiatives.

• Connecting experiences and solutions between countries and regions.

• Providing technical advice on the design, implementation, and monitoring of national plans.

• Designing and implementing training courses on human rights and businesses.

• Based on experiences, developing tools, guidelines, and methodologies to accelerate transformations and measure the impact on human rights.

• Facilitating dialogue between the public and private sectors, civil society, UN agencies, and other strategic partners.

• Supporting resource mobilization to advance the agenda in countries: Partnerships with the government of Japan and the Andalusian Agency of International Cooperation for Development (AACID).

 

Solutions for action:

 

1. Self-assessment tools

Explore our virtual tool on Human Rights for Businesses. It is freely accessible and serves as an instrument for companies to measure the impact of their operations on human rights and identify areas for improvement.

 

2. Guide on businesses and human rights

Read our guide on businesses and human rights. It is freely accessible and aims to provide the private sector, entrepreneurs, as well as governments, civil society, and academia with a better understanding of practical measures that should be taken to ensure that companies can develop effective human rights due diligence systems.

 

3. Regional course on businesses and human rights

You can access our regional course "The Role of Businesses in Protecting and Promoting Human Rights." It is freely accessible and the course covers five modules focused on acquiring knowledge on integrating human rights and the 2030 Agenda into everyday business practices, gender and diversity, due diligence, and corporate responsibility to identify, prevent, mitigate, and be accountable for their impact on human rights, participation mechanisms, and reparations as drivers of inclusion.

 

These tools have been developed with the support of the Andalusian Agency of International Cooperation for Development (AACID).

 

 

 

Learn more about human rights and business

 

 

Publications