Held annually since 2016, the Responsible Business and Human Rights Forum convenes governments, civil society organizations, human rights defenders, trade unions, academia, international organizations, national human rights institutions, business enterprises, industry associations, journalists, lawyers, activists and campaigners for constructive dialogue and peer-learning on how to strengthen responsible business in the region. The 4th Responsible Business and Human Rights Forum will convene stakeholders in the Asia-Pacific region to take stock of progress and discuss challenges and opportunities for advancing responsible business. Under the theme “Harnessing Levers of Change”, the Forum will explore what has worked to promote business respect for human rights and the environment and what has not, as well as what novel strategies can be employed to accelerate progress in this domain with the participation of different stakeholders across the region.

The Forum will be held during 22–24 August 2022, and co-organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO), International Organization for Migration (IOM), Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), and UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights (UNWG).

Objectives

The Forum aims to:

• Take stock of progress and discuss challenges in promoting responsible business practices in the Asia-Pacific region, and explore lessons learned;
• Reflect and build on the lessons learned to scale up progress on responsible business and showcase innovative strategies to that effect;
• Promote collaboration and networking among a wide range of stakeholders, including rights holders, governments, businesses and industry associations, national human rights institutions, civil society organizations, trade unions, human rights defenders, academia, lawyers, and journalists.

Programme

The Forum programme is available on www.rbhrforum.com. The Forum will be held in person in Bangkok, Thailand, as well as live-streamed online.

This event is supported by the Government of Japan, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency and the European Union.