State of Play - Human Rights within the Political Economy of States
30 March 2014
The third report in IHRB's “State of Play” report series, this report catalogues the approaches being taken by States around the world to embed human rights within their economic agendas and activities.
The Report aims to unpick some of the motivations, incentives and disincentives driving one of the key business and human rights challenges for States – that of policy coherence.
It then provides examples from over 70 countries of recent action within States’ economic and human rights agendas, looking at various avenues for application, including how states:
- regulate the marketplace
- enforce and adjudicate the rules
- manage their trade and investment regimes
- operate as economic actors themselves
- manage their partnerships
The Report ultimately suggests that enhanced cooperation within and amongst States is needed if the promotion and regulation of more socially and environmentally sustainable business practices is to lead to better human rights outcomes.
