Recommendations for National Action Plans on Business and Human Rights
B. Domestic / overseas standards and cases
1) UNGPs
4. States should take additional steps to protect against human rights abuses by
business enterprises that are owned or controlled by the State, or that receive
substantial support and services from State agencies such as export credit
agencies and official investment insurance or guarantee agencies, including,
where appropriate, by requiring human rights due diligence.
2) The UN Guiding Principles above indicate that the government is the primary
duty-bearer to protect human rights. Therefore, the government is obliged to
prevent human rights abuses by State-owned or State-controlled enterprises, or
to mitigate the negative impact on human rights by business enterprises that
receive substantial support from State agencies.
3) European countries have already recognized the corporate social responsibility
including human rights, introduced and implemented policies on public
corporations and institutions to internalize their responsibility. In addition, these
countries have taken social factors including human rights into account when
supporting business enterprises through public financial organizations such as
export credit agencies, and required business enterprises taking part in
development aid projects to pay attention to human rights. For example, California
Public Employees’ Retirement System, the Public Pension of the Netherlands and
the Norwegian Pension Fund reflected social factors including human rights in
investment decisions, thereby directly and indirectly requiring business enterprises
to consider human rights.
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