Taking Stock, Looking Ahead - human rights and the commodity trading sector
13 November 2020
Two years since the publication of The Commodity Trading Sector - Guidance on Implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, an interactive online version of the Guidance is now available to support companies and other stakeholders.
The new website - www.commodity-trading.org - funded by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) - has been designed as a user-friendly and easy-to-navigate version of the 2018 Guidance to help commodity trading firms understand and develop human rights due diligence processes consistent with the UNGPs in their company systems and cultures.
The new site offers step-by-step guidance using visual infographics, analysis, illustrative examples, current practices, and suggested actions that are applicable for all companies in the sector, regardless of their area of activity or size. It also provides a tool for the sector as a whole in developing a shared practice of responsible trading consistent with international human rights standards. It should therefore also be useful to all those who are interested in promoting respect for human rights in the commodity trading sector, including industry associations, civil society organisations and governments.
Alongside this new tool, IHRB has released a new report that takes stock of progress by commodity traders since 2018 in integrating human rights due diligence in operations and business relationships. The report addresses recent developments of relevance to commodity trading and includes recommendations for potential future actions by governments and industry actors.
