By Witness Radio team.
Lusaka, Zambia: The United Nations Working Group on Business and Human Rights has expressed profound concerns over the distressingly slow pace at which African member states are adopting the National Action Plans (NAP) on Business and Human Rights. The situation demands urgent and immediate action.
NAPs are tools expected to implement the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs). The guiding principles are the global standards for preventing and addressing the risk of adverse impacts on human rights involving business activity.
Under NAPs, each member state must establish strategies and expectations that require businesses to respect human rights, conduct human rights due diligence, and provide effective remedies for abuses, thereby enhancing human rights protection in economic activities.
Speaking at the closing of the 4th African Forum on Business and Human Rights, the African Representative on the United Nations Working Group (UNWG) on Business and Human Rights, Prof. Damilola Olawuyi, decried the small number of African member states that have adopted the NAPs.
According to the UNWG, only five (5) out of the fifty-five (55) states in Africa have adopted the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, namely, Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, Liberia, and Ghana.
Damilola said it was such a minimal number and called on states in Africa to step up their commitments to the UNGPs by adopting National Action Plans on Business and Human Rights, and asked those that have adopted the NAPs to ensure that there’s a practical implementation.
He emphasized that UNGPs provide an authoritative common reference point on how to achieve the Africa we want. The key concepts discussed during our three-day activity, including human rights due diligence, meaningful stakeholder engagement, and remediating arms, should serve as powerful practical tools for dismantling workplace inequalities and achieving sustainable development.
Damilola expressed, “Africa is on the rise, with the promise of new investments in mining, infrastructure, agribusiness, and green technologies. We envision a prosperous Africa built on responsible business practices, and the adoption of NAPs can pave the way for this bright future.”
He warned that profit maximization is impossible in an atmosphere of public distrust, community protests, and reputation damage. With increased legislation and NAPs across the World, including the EU directive on corporate due diligence, it is clear that African businesses have failed to respond to the risk of being left behind in a rapidly changing global economy. The consequences of not adopting NAPs are severe, including potential loss of business, damage to reputation, and legal liabilities.
He urged businesses to take the lead in integrating the UNGPs across their value chains, in their corporate policies, procurement standards, and operational grievance mechanisms. Businesses have the power to drive change and make a significant difference.
“As UNWG, we offer to disseminate success stories and innovations from African businesses that are taking the lead in placing people and planet above profit,” said Damilola.
