IGF 2021 Town Hall #11 Leveraging the UNGPs on Business and Human Rights in the Tech Sector

The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (the UNGPs) sets out a universally agreed framework for ensuring that human rights are protected and respected by the private sector. We believe there is an important opportunity being missed to advance human rights within the tech sector specifically by making use of these principles and the National Action Plans (NAP) developed by states to implement them.

The digital rights agenda is rarely reflected in NAPs, but we hope the experience of our session speakers will help others to take note of the importance that they are. We’ve been identifying and acting on practical ways to integrate tech sector considerations into processes, and leveraging the UNGP framework broadly in six diverse contexts across three regions. Session participants who want to learn more about critical opportunities to advance digital rights within their own contexts that they might be overlooking should definitely attend.

We hope that session participants come away with:
-Different perspectives on making use of NAPs on Business and Human Rights to advance digital rights.
-Opinions and perspectives on the utility of the UNGPs on Business and Human Rights framework for advancing digital rights.
-Effective strategies for engaging governments in the Business and Human Rights framework, in particular, in the context of shrinking spaces for civic engagement.
-Effective strategies for engaging tech companies and technologists in the Business and Human Rights framework.

The organisers/speakers of this session have formed a network of civil society organisations working on this issue across the globe and have presented on the topic previously in other online fora.

Through the session we will identify and strategise on ways to integrate tech sector considerations into various national level processes, and leveraging the UNGP framework more broadly in three regional contexts. We will strive to engage the audience and encourage them to take note of the existing work and work that still needs to be done. The digital rights agenda is rarely reflected in National Action Plans and session participants might find they are missing critical opportunities to advance digital rights in their own contexts.

By hearing from different organisations attempting to integrate tech sector considerations into their country's National Action Plans, which no country has yet to do in a meaningful way, the eventual change we hope to see is that this is achieved in some country - either one of the session speakers or participants.

Each speaker will share their experience of utilising the UNGP framework - either with advocating with governments or engaging the private sector - to promote human rights in their respective contexts.