Research Activities
Research Projects 2025
Did NAPs really facilitate implementation of UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights? – Case studies in Asia –
Outline
It has been more than 10 years since the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights were unanimously endorsed by the UN Human Rights Council in 2011. Policies and corporate practices in each country are developing to effectively implement the Guiding Principles, which are not legally binding. Whereas the expectations of society for respect for human rights in economic activities are increasing, doubts about the effectiveness of the Guiding Principles are growing. This study focuses on National Action Plans (NAPs), which specify how each country will implement the Guiding Principles as concrete policies, and examines whether the formulation of NAPs actually contributes to the implementation of the Guiding Principles in the countries concerned. The creation of NAP was recommended by the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights at the UN General Assembly in 2014, and was developed in Europe and the United States, with the United Kingdom as the first country. In Asia, Thailand was the first to formulate and launch NAP in 2019, followed by Japan in 2020, Pakistan in 2021, Mongolia, Vietnam, and Indonesia in 2023 and Nepal in 2024. Malaysia is expected to create the one at the end of this year. In Europe, where the initial formulation of the NAP preceded, the movement to revise NAP has been slow, while the movement to formulate the NAP in Asia is active. This study explores the factors behind this and whether the formulation of NAPs to implement the Guiding Principles is really effective on the ground.
Period
April 2025 - March 2027
Members
| Role | Member |
|---|---|
| [ Organizer ] | Yamada, Miwa |
*Affiliations are as of April 2025.
Expected Outcome
- The Ajia Keizai