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Last update:
26/09/2007

Corporate social responsibility>> Global Compact

The ILO and the United Nations Global Compact

United Nations Global Compact

The United Nations Global Compact is an initiative of ethical commitment earmarked to encouraging enterprises worldwide to adopt as an integral part of their strategies and operations ten principles of conduct and action in the areas of Human Rights, Labour, Environment and Anti-Corruption.

It seeks to create a global corporate citizenship that may combine the interests and processes of business with the values and demands of the civil society, as well as projects developed by the UN, sectoral International Organisations, trade unions and NGOs.

The idea of a UN Global Compact on social responsibility of enterprises was put forward by United Nation Secretary-General Kofi Annan at the World Economic Forum in Davos on 31 January 1999.

>> Presentation

>> Global Compact on social responsibility

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- Cinterfor/ILO
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Its operational phase was launched on 26 July when the Secretary-General himself challenged business leaders to join a global compact to put into practice the widely shared commitment to combine the activities and needs of companies with the principles and objectives of the policy and institutional actions developed by the United Nations, labour organisations and the civil society.

It implied acknowledging the needs shared by everyone in a globalised world and the beginning of an enriching mutual cooperation that would contribute to eliminate the most evident and harmful effects of the current economic dynamics and promoting human welfare and dignity. In essence, it is the answer to nine (though now it is ten) challenges and a commitment with the needs of a changing world.

The compact can be voluntarily adopted by businesses and labour and civil organisations. It relies on their conviction to implement the Compact's ten current principles in their strategies and operations. In this sense, the compact is not a regulatory instrument that sets up legal codes of conduct for all companies or grants certifications to businesses that comply with certain requirements. The companies which participate of the compact take up the responsibility of implementing the compact's principles in their daily operations. Furthermore, they commit themselves to ensure accountability to the society as well as publicity and transparency with regards to the progress made in the process of implementing the ten principles.

The compact is a network where participating companies (more than 700 of 54 countries worlwide), the UN, its sectoral agencies (ILO, UNCTAD, UNHCR, etc.), global NGOs (AI, HRW, WWF, etc.) and international trade union meetings (ICFTU, UNI, TUAC) promote its objectives and principles around four core components or instruments that mark the working style and the activities developed by the entities that adopt the compact:

a) Joint initiatives to promote good business practices.
b) Dialogue forums and cooperation networks between the market and society on the compact's target areas.
c) An active education and learning forum to promote such values among the educational community, together with case studies and pilot initiatives to implement those principles.
d) Local and national networks and platforms to facilitate mutual learning at enterprises and address the specific needs and interests of each business community as they advance towards the implementation of the ten principles.

All these activities and all the actions connected with the promotion and development of the compact are directed from the United Nations Global Compact Office, with headquarters in New York.

During the last year, some local platforms and networks have been consolidated in several countries worldwide that work on the implementation of the ten principles among the business community engaged in them.

Further information: http://www.unglobalcompact.org/