Ten years after the publication of the Children’s Rights and Business Principles (CRBPs), UNICEF, Save the Children and the UN Global Compact have released a report (October 2022) and a Brief (June 2022) reviewing progress and looking ahead on embedding children's rights in responsible and sustainable business conduct.
The report offers a comprehensive overview of trends in action by States, businesses and investors. It describes how despite progress, children's rights remain at risk of invisibility even though virtually all forms of business activity can have adverse impact on children.
Looking ahead, the report argues that integrating children's rights – and the rights of others at risk of marginalization – into responsible business conduct is essential for sustainable development and a just transition. Mechanisms supporting responsible business conduct, such as mandatory or voluntary human rights and environmental due diligence, Environmental Social and Governance monitoring and reporting, and measures to hold businesses to account, need to be designed around those most at risk of being excluded – including children.
The report concludes that action by States in relation to the conduct of business and by businesses themselves provide additional transformational opportunities for realizing the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Climate Agreement targets.
