Guide to Human Rights Impact Assessment and Management
The Guide to Human Rights Impact Assessment and Management is an important tool to help companies manage their human rights risks.
The Guide to Human Rights Impact Assessment and Management – Road-Testing Draft (the Guide) was published in 2007 by the IBLF and International Finance Corporation (IFC), in cooperation with the UN Global Compact.
Designed as a practical tool for business managers, the Guide provides a systematic framework in which a company can evaluate the human rights risks in its business operations. The objective is to produce a guide that will provide a comprehensive method of assessing the human rights impacts of a proposed or existing operation, while blending with existing due diligence systems. IBLF and IFC are currently seeking companies to road-test the Guide in order to validate its practical applicability.
It is IBLF’s intention that this exercise will be a “win–win” opportunity for both IBLF and road-testing companies. In committing to road-test the Guide, companies will undertake a human rights impact assessment (HRIA), which will provide valuable information about an existing or potential business operation. By following the eight-step process, business managers in road-testing companies will identify, assess, and resultantly, may possibly consider the implementation of new measures that will strengthen their company's contribution to human rights due diligence.
With support and advice from IBLF on how best to use the Guide, road-testing companies should, for example, be better placed to anticipate any possible human rights impacts of a project or operation. The two year road-testing phase may raise areas for improvement in the Guide and it is such feedback that will enable IBLF and IFC to adapt the Guide accordingly to ensure that the final version is relevant, practical and “fit for purpose” for a business enterprise. The final version will be published in early 2010.
The Guide has been designed for application in any business sector. To ensure the final version meets the needs of all sectors, we are currently seeking companies from a variety of business sectors to road-test the Guide, including:
* Extractive - Oil, Gas & Mining
* Pharmaceutical & Chemical
* Construction & Infrastructure
* Technology - Hardware, Software and Telecommunications
* Food & Beverage
* Retail - Garment, Footwear, Homeware, Toys, etc.
* Transport - Air, Land & Sea, including manufacturing
* Tourism
* Banking & Business Services
* Agribusiness
IBLF is aware that several companies, particularly in the extractive sector, have developed social impact assessments and management processes. We are keen to explore and learn how such social impact assessments and management processes could work alongside the Guide’s Human Rights Impact Assessment and Management eight-step process. In this regard, we would like to hear from companies that already undertake social and/ or human rights impact assessments, and are interested in engaging in an impact assessment mapping exercise.
For more detailed information about the Guide or if you are interested in becoming a road-testing company, please contact Désirée Abrahams at IBLF on firstname.lastname@iblf.org or + 44 (0) 20 7467 3608.
The Guide to Human Rights Impact Assessment and Management – Road-Testing Draft (the Guide) was published in 2007 by the IBLF and International Finance Corporation (IFC), in cooperation with the UN Global Compact.
Download the Guide to Human Rights Impact Assessment and Management
Download an executive overview of the report
Download Frequently Asked Questions about the report - (also available in Spanish and French)
Designed as a practical tool for business managers, the Guide provides a systematic framework in which a company can evaluate the human rights risks in its business operations. The objective is to produce a guide that will provide a comprehensive method of assessing the human rights impacts of a proposed or existing operation, while blending with existing due diligence systems. IBLF and IFC are currently seeking companies to road-test the Guide in order to validate its practical applicability.
It is IBLF’s intention that this exercise will be a “win–win” opportunity for both IBLF and road-testing companies. In committing to road-test the Guide, companies will undertake a human rights impact assessment (HRIA), which will provide valuable information about an existing or potential business operation. By following the eight-step process, business managers in road-testing companies will identify, assess, and resultantly, may possibly consider the implementation of new measures that will strengthen their company's contribution to human rights due diligence.
With support and advice from IBLF on how best to use the Guide, road-testing companies should, for example, be better placed to anticipate any possible human rights impacts of a project or operation. The two year road-testing phase may raise areas for improvement in the Guide and it is such feedback that will enable IBLF and IFC to adapt the Guide accordingly to ensure that the final version is relevant, practical and “fit for purpose” for a business enterprise. The final version will be published in early 2010.
The Guide has been designed for application in any business sector. To ensure the final version meets the needs of all sectors, we are currently seeking companies from a variety of business sectors to road-test the Guide, including:
* Extractive - Oil, Gas & Mining
* Pharmaceutical & Chemical
* Construction & Infrastructure
* Technology - Hardware, Software and Telecommunications
* Food & Beverage
* Retail - Garment, Footwear, Homeware, Toys, etc.
* Transport - Air, Land & Sea, including manufacturing
* Tourism
* Banking & Business Services
* Agribusiness
IBLF is aware that several companies, particularly in the extractive sector, have developed social impact assessments and management processes. We are keen to explore and learn how such social impact assessments and management processes could work alongside the Guide’s Human Rights Impact Assessment and Management eight-step process. In this regard, we would like to hear from companies that already undertake social and/ or human rights impact assessments, and are interested in engaging in an impact assessment mapping exercise.
For more detailed information about the Guide or if you are interested in becoming a road-testing company, please contact Désirée Abrahams at IBLF on firstname.lastname@iblf.org or + 44 (0) 20 7467 3608.