Meeting of the OECD Working Group on Responsible Business Conduct
29.06.2023
On 19-20 June 2023, a regular meeting of the Responsible Business Conduct Working Group (hereinafter referred to as RBC) was held online. Aliya Musina, representative of the Secretariat of the National Contact Centre, took part in the meeting. The meeting discussed an update on due diligence and activities of NCPs in OECD member countries. RBC Chair Christine Kaufman congratulated all participants on the targeted updates of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and thanked them for their hard work in shaping the process. In this regard, participants informed about their efforts to promote the Guidelines, including plans to translate it into national languages. For example, Sweden translated the updated Guidelines into the national language and published them on its official website, Poland promoted the updated OECD Guidelines on its NCP website and distributed information to partners. The session also included discussions on the peer review of the 2022 NCP (Australia, Ireland, Sweden) undertaken to address the recommendations made. For example, Sweden submitted its institutional arrangements and promotional activities to the recommendations provided by the OECD: • Working groups are formally established within the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, involving external stakeholders as members of the NCP. In addition, the decision-making and reporting procedures of the NCPs are being clarified; • Measures have been taken to improve staff knowledge/competence on NCPs and the OECD Guidelines; • The best way to promote the NCP's activities on social media is evaluated, etc. Also, the OECD Secretariat presented the draft annual report on NCP activities in 2022 and an update on the implementation of an activity such as NCP Strengthening Plan (2022-2024). During the meeting, participants noted some recommendations for NCPs to emphasise presented in the draft report: • Developing a strategy to improve website accessibility, taking into account any government restrictions, as well as increasing your online presence by linking to partner websites, cross-posting and continuing to develop your online promotion using video, podcasts or social media; • Conducting outreach to other government departments on the updated OECD Guiding Principles and participate in the development of the 2nd National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights; • Specifying the reasons for the delay in the processing of specific cases in NCP applications. In conclusion, the Chairman of the Working Group on RBC K. Kaufman, summarised the discussion and thanked all participants for a fruitful and informative discussion.
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