1 Promoting the OECD Guidelines and providing guidance to businesses
One of the NCP’s most important responsibilities is to promote the OECD Guidelines for Responsible Business Conduct. The objective of the Guidelines is to promote positive contributions from businesses to economic, environmental and social progress all over the world.
The NCP carries out extensive promotional efforts and provides guidance to Norwegian businesses on how they can meet the expectations of the OECD Guidelines, including through courses and seminars.
During 2023, the NCP held 12 events of its own and participated in 31 other events reaching a total of 4,300 people.
Norway’s first conference on the OECD Guidelines
How can businesses operate responsibly in view of climate change, environmental challenges and a turbulent world? This was the main topic of the conference on responsible business conduct held on 14 December at the Munch Museum.
The conference was the first of its kind in Norway and focused on the OECD Guidelines and important updates. The conference particularly addressed climate change, the environment and conflict, and how the updated Guidelines can provide direction to address these challenges. A total of 170 people attended this new, important meeting place to connect and refresh their expertise.
Anne Marit Bjørnflaten, State Secretary at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries, and Allan Jørgensen of the OECD Centre for Responsible Business Conduct, gave the opening speeches about global challenges and important updates to the Guidelines. They both praised the NCP for its work on promoting the Guidelines and handling specific instances.
The first panel discussed how businesses can operate responsibly in a world impacted by crises, conflicts and changing operating conditions. The second panel discussion focused on climate change and the environment – and how businesses can observe the updated Guidelines in practice. The last panel closed with the question: How can we ensure respect for human rights and decent work in the green transition?
The conference was organised by the Norwegian National Contact Point for Responsible Business Conduct and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries in cooperation with NHO and LO.
Reaching a broader audience through courses and seminars
In 2023, the NCP aimed to reach beyond the Oslo region through regional courses and webinars.
Across the country
The NCP held breakfast meetings in Førde and Sogndal in cooperation with Norec, Sunnfjord Utvikling, Sparebanken Sogn og Fjordane and Sogn Næring on the Transparency Act and the OECD Guidelines.
The good cooperation with the Norwegian Consumer Authority continues, and in 2023, it collaborated with the NCP on organising courses in Tromsø and Stavanger. The courses provided an introduction to the Transparency Act, the OECD Guidelines and due diligence, and were aimed particularly at companies covered by the Act.
Companies from the respective regions shared their experiences of their efforts to comply with the Transparency Act, which provided many good questions and exchanges. The courses also included dilemma training where the participants were given specific cases for discussion.
Webinars and other events
The NCP has contributed to several webinars on due diligence under the Transparency Act, in preparation for the reporting deadline, which is on 30 June 2023. The webinars were arranged by the Norwegian Consumer Authority, Virke and Spekter, and reached a total of 950 participants. The NCP has also held presentations about the OECD Guidelines at courses organised by Future Proof/the Rafto Foundation and the Juristenes Utdanningssenter as well as at the Norwegian Institute of Public Accountants’ sustainability academy.
The NCP as an expert body
Input – new regulations
In 2023, the NCP provided input on the implementation of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) in Norwegian law and the European Commission’s proposal for banning products produced using forced labour. A key element in the input is the need for consistent requirements for the business sector, with the OECD Guidelines for Responsible Business Conduct serving as an important and shared starting point.
Business and human rights
Human rights are a key element in the NCP’s work. Together with the Norwegian Human Rights Institution, the NCP has prepared a table of examples of how business activities can have adverse impacts on human rights. The NCP also gave presentations on human rights and decent work at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries’ competence forum for state-owned enterprises.
The NCP contributed to a master’s course in business and human rights at the University of Bergen and a lecture on the OECD Guidelines at the University of Oslo, with discussions based on actual specific instances.
Arendalsuka – an important meeting place
The NCP was present during Arendalsuka, where the Transparency Act and the OECD Guidelines were important topics. The NCP contributed to debates and organised a panel discussion on the updated OECD Guidelines to a packed venue.
Survey of businesses: Boards more involved in responsible business conduct
The NCP’s 2023 survey of businesses shows positive developments in several areas since the previous survey in 2019.
The survey maps knowledge of and work on the OECD Guidelines for Responsible Business Conduct among Norwegian business leaders. It was launched at the House of Literature in Oslo in June 2023, where a panel of representatives from NHO, the Norwegian Consumer Authority, Virke and the NG Group discussed the results.
The most important positive changes since the previous survey are increasing involvement and work in corporate boards on responsible business conduct and sustainability, a higher proportion of companies addressing risks with respect to human rights, the environment and climate, and increased knowledge of the ILO Core Conventions. The survey also shows a clear link between the size of the company and familiarity with, and knowledge of, responsible business conduct.
Bente Øverli of the Norwegian Consumer Authority stressed that many companies are doing a lot of good work on due diligence and often possess a lot of ‘in-house’ knowledge. ‘However, I also talk to many senior executives, and it unfortunately appears that some of them have an inadequate emphasis on responsible business conduct and due diligence,’ she pointed out.
Runa Opdal Kerr of the NG Group believes that a risk-based, systematic approach is essential. ‘You can’t check everything. We have moved on from the past where we focused too much on details instead of systemic challenges.’
One important conclusion is that information and guidance are still needed in relation to the OECD Guidelines and responsible business conduct among Norwegian companies, also after the Transparency Act entered into force.
The survey was conducted by Sentio Research Norway.
- 56 % are covered by the Transparency Act
- 52 % are familiar with the Transparency Act
- 49 % of companies covered by the Transparency Act have mapped the risk of adverse impacts on human rights and decent work
- 67 % of those who have mapped the risk have implemented measures to cease, prevent or mitigate such impacts
BI Norwegian Business School – one year of the Transparency Act
The venue was packed, and the debate heated when BI Norwegian Business School and the NCP organised a breakfast seminar on the Transparency Act in October 2023.
Companies’ experiences
Three companies shared their experience with the Transparency Act: Posten Bring, Skogstad Sport and Wilh. Wilhelmsen Holding ASA. They stressed that the act has increased companies’ knowledge of human rights.
Companies initially focused on complying with the requirements, but they also see opportunities for rationalisation and improvements that are not just about reducing risk. Updating and raising awareness of internal guidelines and procedures across different departments has been just one of the positive outcomes.
There has also been a strong increase in management involvement. However, there are also challenges relating to the implementation of the act, such as questions around prioritisation and to what degree companies are responsible for remediating adverse impacts that have occurred.
Does the right to information work?
Tord Dale, Head of Sustainability/Policy at Virke (the Federation of Norwegian Enterprise), Ina Lindahl Nyrud, lawyer at the Norwegian Union of Journalists, and Anja Bakken Riise, Executive Director of The Future in Our Hands contributed to the lively panel discussion facilitated by the NCP.
‘The Transparency Act is a potential scoop for journalists’ access to information,’ Nyrud stated. Bakken Riise still calls for a right to information about production sites and believes this must be incorporated after an evaluation of the act, among other things, to strengthen verifiability. One concern expressed by Dale was that it was not easy to get civil society and journalists, who demand immediate answers, to understand that due diligence is a long-term process.
One positive effect of the act, according to the debaters, is that challenges related to human rights and the environment, and ultimately, sustainability, are now discussed more holistically in Norway, and that we are more aware of our responsibility for a green and just transition.