National roadmap to promote responsible business practices in Malaysia developed

Kuala Lumpur (ILO News) – Representatives of government, employers and workers have agreed on a national roadmap to promote responsible business practices in Malaysia, following a workshop organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Ministry of Human Resources (MOHR), with support from the Government of Japan.

Held on 25-25 February 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, the "National Tripartite Workshop on Responsible Business Practices, Investment and Trade for the realization of Decent Work and inclusive growth in Malaysia” brought together different ministries representatives, employers’ and workers' organizations to discuss challenges and opportunities related to the operations of multinational enterprises in Malaysia. The focus was on strategies to promote decent work in supply chains, guided by the ILO MNE Declaration and other global instruments on responsible business conduct.

The event featured presentations from the Malaysian Investment Development Agency (MIDA), which outlined policies and strategies aimed at attracting investment and their potential to create decent work and promote local economic development. Additionally, the Legal Affairs Department (BHEUU) provided an overview of the draft National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights currently under development and highlighted how issues related to labour rights at work were integrated within this framework.

© ILO

© ILO

At the event, participants learned about the guidance of the ILO MNE Declaration and its operational tools and the different yet complementary roles of governments, social partners and enterprises to advance responsible business conduct. As the result of the workshop, the tripartite constituents collaborated to create a national roadmap outlining key priorities and implementation recommendations. These include the designation of tripartite-appointed national focal points to promote the MNE Declaration to enhance policy coherence, as well as a call to advance decent work in key priority sectors including in the electrical and electronics industry, automotive sector and gig economy.

“The ILO MNE Declaration provides guidance for enterprises to align with international labour standards, fostering decent work, human rights and sustainable development,” said Raja Nizam, the Undersecretary of the MOHR International Division. “We must seek synergies with ongoing initiatives such as the NAP on Business and Human Rights, New Industrial Master Plan 2030, National Energy Transition Roadmap, and National Action Plan on Forced Labour to ensure a cohesive and comprehensive approach. Let us use this platform to exchange ideas, share best practices, and develop actionable strategies that will contribute to the realization of decent work and inclusive growth in Malaysia.”

Motoko Ogawa, the Director Business and Human Rights Policy Office, Trade Policy Bureau of Ministry of Economy, Trade and Investment (METI) stressed Japan’s commitment to promote responsible business conduct in her opening remarks.

“Japan is committed to fostering responsible business practices in Asia. We are pleased to carry out this project in Malaysia to build responsible value chains. Through this project, we will focus on enhancing the capacity and collaboration of tripartite constituents to create an environment where sustainable enterprises can implement responsible business practices,” she said.

The event was organized by the MOHR and the ILO’s Building Responsible Value Chain in Asia through the Promotion of Decent Work in Business Operations Project (RVC-II) funded by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI] of Japan, which aims to promote inclusive, responsible and sustainable enterprises and decent work in supply chains through capacity-building programmes for enterprises and ILO’s government, employer and worker constituents in four Asian countries including Malaysia.

“As Malaysia assumes the ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025, this moment presents a valuable opportunity to further integrate responsible business practices into national and regional economic strategies,” said Yuki Kobayashi, the ILO Programme Coordinator.

“This workshop provides a platform for dialogue on how government, businesses and workers can work together to ensure that economic progress translates into decent work opportunities, respect for fundamental labour and human rights, and long-term prosperity for all," she underlined.

The ILO MNE Declaration provides guidance to governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations as well as enterprises on inclusive, responsible and sustainable workplace practices. Its principles cover the entire decent work agenda and are founded substantially on principles contained in international labour standards.