OECD GUIDELINES FOR MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES Conference on Corporate

OECD GUIDELINES FOR MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES Conference on “Corporate Social Responsibility for Competitive Entrepreneurship” Responsible Business for a Better Live 7 November 2013, Riga By Mari-lou Dupont, Legal Consultant

AGENDA - Context: A new global agenda - OECD Guidelines overview - Unique implementation mechanism - Conclusion

CONTEXT - New global Responsible Business Conduct (RBC) agenda - Baseline expectations are now clearer than ever - Unique position of the Guidelines

WHAT ARE THE GUIDELINES? • A set of recommendations addressed by governments to multinational enterprises operating in or from adherent countries • The only government-backed recommendations for responsible business conduct in existence today • Reflect good practices for all

ADHERENTS TO THE GUIDELINES • 45 countries – OECD members plus 11 non-OECD members: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Egypt, Latvia, Lithuania, Morocco, Peru, Romania and Tunisia – Applications from Jordan, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Serbia are being considered and Russia is on an accession path to the OECD • Representative of all regions of the world • Account for large majority of global investment

COMPREHENSIVE: 11 CHAPTERS Concept and Principles General Policies Disclosure Human Rights Employment and Industrial Relations Environment Combating Bribery, Bribe Solicitation and Extortion Science and Technology Competition Taxation Consumer Interests Not covered by any other RBC instrument New

TWO SIDES OF THE SAME COIN 1. Recognizing positive contribution 2. Avoiding adverse impacts and addressing them when they occur Risk-based due diligence

PROACTIVE AGENDA • New prospective dimension added in the 2011 Update - Helps enterprises and stakeholders identify and respond to risks of adverse impacts in business operations • Proactive Agenda projects: 1. Project chaired by Netherlands on due diligence in the financial sector 2. Project on responsible investment in agricultural supply chains 3. Project chaired by Canada (in co-operation with Norway) on stakeholder engagement and due diligence in the extractive sector.

WHAT MAKES THE GUIDELINES UNIQUE? - Implementation mechanism through National Contacts Points (NCPs) - NCPs main responsibility is to further the effectiveness of the Guidelines ØUndertaking information and promotion activities; ØContributing to the resolution of issues that arise in the implementation of the Guidelines in specific instances; ØReporting on their activities.

SPECIFIC INSTANCE PROCESS

SPECIFIC INSTANCES • More than 300 considered since 2000 – 60 new specific instances since update • Trends: – Human rights, labour and environment predominant issues – Most frequently cited sectors: Mining and Quarrying, Manufacturing and Financing – Large number of issues brought up by NGOs – Non-adhering countries (50% in 2013) – Stakeholder engagement and Indigenous Peoples in developing countries

CONCLUSION CSR or RBC Strategy Values Charter Code of Conduct Business Principles Code of Ethics

FUTURE WORK v Outreach v NCP peer learning v Global Forum on Responsible Business Conduct in 2014

“RBC In”… publication series • Initial focus on Central Asia and South Caucasus • Concise, one-stop guidance for governments, investors and civil society to better understand the existing RBC expectations.

THANK YOU !