Inaugural Global Forum on Responsible Business Conduct

26-27 June 2013, Paris – France

The launch of the Global Forum on Responsible Business Conduct comes at a time of unprecedented international convergence and coherence on what constitutes responsible business conduct. From multilaterally agreed corporate responsibility instruments to national policies and specific codes of conduct, there is a widely shared recognition that responsibility has to be an integral part of any healthy business environment.

This inaugural meeting will bring together policy makers, businesses, trade unions, and civil society to address the core challenge of how to do well while doing no harm in an effort to contribute to sustainable development. Special attention will be given to challenges of the financial and extractive sectors, with two additional events planned on disclosure and reporting and the ICT sector.

Special working session on responsibility in the financial sector, organised in partnership with the Netherlands National Contact Point and ORSE Finance Club of France, will be held on 27 June. This will be a great opportunity to discuss the international framework of financial corporate responsibility instruments, the current practices and the extent of the financial institutions influence on client activities.

For more information, please visit the website of the conference

The Netherlands NCP published its initial assessment on the specific instance “Royal Dutch Shell (and UK financial institutions) – Stroitel/Sakhalin Environmental Watch” on March 20, 2013. In this initial assessment the NCP concludes that this specific instance does not merit further examination.

The initial assessment can be found here.

On March 19th, 2013 the Netherlands NCP for the OECD Guidelines published a preliminary statement on the specific instance “POSCO, ABP/APG, GPF – Lok Shakti Abhiyan, KTNC Watch, Fair Green and Global Alliance, ForUM”. The report describes the good offices offered by the NCP after receipt of this notification in October 2012.

On March 6th, 2013 the Dutch parties involved in the specific instance (SOMO, Both Ends, ABP/APG) agreed on a public joint statement on the issues raised in the notification.

Both documents can be found here.

Implementing the OECD Guidelines in the financial sector

Enabling Responsible Business Conduct

Frankfurt – April 12, 2013

Responsible business conduct is becoming increasingly relevant to the financial sector. The updated OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, as presented by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Paris in May 2011, are a comprehensive set of recommendations that  internationally acting companies from 44 countries are encouraged to adhere to by their governments.  As part of the Proactive Agenda agreed at the time to consider with the sector how these Guidelines apply to the financial sector, the OECD has commissioned a Research Report.

The Netherlands and German National Contact Points (NCP) for the OECD Guidelines have joined forces to host a conference on the theme of implementing the OECD Guidelines in the financial sector on April 12^th, 2013 in the premises of KfW Bankengruppe, Palmengartenstraße 5-9, 60325 Frankfurt am Main.

We invite you to join us and many of your sector representatives in Frankfurt on April 12^th, 2013 for a program which includes keynote speeches from Hans-Joachim Otto, Parliamentary State Secretary, Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, Simon Smits, Vice Minister for Foreign Trade of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Carolyn Erwin,  Director for Financial and Enterprise Affairs, OECD (to be confirmed); a presentation of the OECD Research report “Mapping exercise on environmental and social due diligence practices in the financial sector”; and focus discussions with best practices and suggestions for future steps.

Further information and updates on the program, and on how to register, can be found here

Find here the final report of the National Contact Point for the OECD Guidelines in the Netherlands on the
Specific Instance notified by CEDHA, INCASUR Foundation, SOMO and Oxfam Novib concerning
Nidera Holding B.V.

Due to the update of the OECD Guidelines in 2011 new features are added in this website, like:

• Updated guidelines
• Powerpoint presentation
• Factsheet

The Hague, 20 August 2010

After concerns raised by labour union FNV about the possible use of forced labour, an NCP procedure took place in the fall of 2001 with SBM Offshore (formerly IHC Caland) about her business activity in Burma (see final statement 2004). SBM decided then not to develop further activities in Burma. In addition the company sent a letter to their principal about adherence to the OECD Guidelines. The company also joined the union in a visit to the Burmese ambassador in London to speak about the human rights situation in Burma.

In the spring of 2010, both parties met again with support of the Dutch NCP. The meeting gave FNV and SBM the opportunity to discuss responsible business conduct in Burma. Both parties were satisfied to renew the agreements made in 2004.

This conversation took place as a follow-up activity on the notification in 2004. There was no new notification of a possible breach of the OECD Guidelines. For the Dutch NCP this was a start of a new working method through which companies and NGOs stay in a dialogue to exchange views about responsible business activities.

SBM has worked to contribute to a ban on the use of forced labour in Burma for the last 10 years. The company regularly carries out a Social Accountability Audit. It intends to make the outcome thereof available, thereby offering more information on the compliance with OECD Guidelines by SBM in Burma. SBM shall enter into discussions with its principal again with regard to the OECD Guidelines. Furthermore, the company is willing to visit the Burma Ambassador in London to again insist with the regime on compliance, together with the FNV union.

Recently the Dutch NCP closed two cases:

• August 2010: Shell – Local communities & Sherpa (Corrib Gas Project) (Ireland)
• March 2010: SHV Holdings – Shehri-Citizens for a Better Environment (Pakistan)

In December 2009, the Dutch National Contact Point of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Corporations (NCP) submitted itself to a voluntary peer review by NCP colleagues from Canada, Chile, France, Japan and the United Kingdom. The NCP considers this review as a valuable learning experience. The recommendations from the review will be used as ideas for the future functioning of the Dutch NCP. For a response by the NCP on the peer review, please click here

Dutch version

The Hague, Monday, August 31, 2009

Dutch NCP publishes final statement concerning Pandacan oil depot Manila, Philippines

Within the non-legal grievance procedure of the Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) the Dutch NCP issued its final statement with regard to a notification concerning Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation (PSPC), a full subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell. The OECD guidelines are recommendations from the governments of its 30 member states and 11 adhering countries regarding responsible corporate conduct of their internationally operating enterprises. They are not legally binding, but provide for a grievance mechanism that enhances implementation and resolution of issues. For that purpose, every OECD or adhering country established a National Contact Point (NCP) that deals with notifications.  In the Netherlands, the NCP acts independent from the government. The composition of its board reflects broadly defined societal interests.

The notifiers alleged that PSPC violated the Guidelines by manipulating local government and withholding information on health and safety aspects of the depot. In its Final Statement, the Dutch NCP makes clear that:

• it cannot conclude that PSPC was improperly involved in local political decision making;
• the health and safety situation around the PSPC perimeters is currently in conformity with international standards;
• it calls for  transparent information and timely communication with local parties from a multinational enterprise such as Royal Dutch Shell.

The notification concerning PSPC was brought before the NCP in June 2006 by the Philippine Fenceline Community for Human Safety and Environmental Protection and Friends of the Earth International. They alleged that PSPC did not make any serious attempts to comply with Ordinance No. 8027 of the City of Manila which implied that the oil depot should be relocated. Instead, PSPC allegedly manipulated local government in order to prolong the latter’s consent for its operations in the densely populated Pandacan area. Also, PSPC would neither share essential information regarding health and safety aspects of its operations at the depot, nor would it take sufficient measures to mitigate potential risks.

Following from these allegations, the notifiers argued that PSPC acted in defiance of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises with respect to health, safety and environmental provisions, involvement in local political activities, and the disclosure of health and safety risks to local stakeholders.

After its decision that the notification merited further consideration, the NCP established the facts by conducting local research, and, within the OECD Guidelines framework, it tried to initiate a dialogue that would lead to a future oriented solution. In February 2008, the Philippine Supreme Court ordered execution of the above mentioned ordinance by the Manila City Council. Given the main objective of the notifiers – relocation of the oil depot – this decision finally promised to provide for a common basis for a solution, as PSPC openly stated that it recognised “that an indefinite and permanent stay in Pandacan is no longer possible given the current urban developments in the area”. When however the City Council of Manila repealed this ordinance by issuing a new ordinance allowing the oil depot to stay, PSPC no longer wished to mediate on the basis of relocation. At that point notifiers did not see any options for a successful outcome of the process, after which the NCP was obliged to issue this final statement.

The NCP does not conclude that PSPC had sought improper exemption from the regulatory framework. The NCP involved the environmental protection agency DCMR for an independent expert review. DCMR is a Netherlands based, independent agency responsible for environmental protection, mainly of the Rotterdam harbour area in which also large oil depots and refineries are located. The DCMR review showed that the current situation at the PSPC part of the Pandacan oil terminal is not unsafe or unhealthy according to international standards.

However, the NCP is of the view that the high standards for disclosure of non-financial information, including environmental reporting, as encouraged by the OECD Guidelines, have not been met in this specific instance. The NCP concludes that PSPC should communicate more proactively and openly with all its stakeholders about its motives, strategy, and considerations, in order to strengthen mutual confidence in the depot with the society in which it operates.

Final statement