OECD member governments work through committees and working parties, where they develop policies, standards, and recommendations and exchange experiences. You can read more about these various committees on the OECD website.
For OECD Watch, the most important of these is the OECD Investment Committee, which is responsible for the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct (OECD Guidelines).
The Investment Committee hosts a Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct (WPRBC) which plays an important role in promoting the OECD Guidelines, strengthening the National Contact Point (NCP) system, fostering dialogue and policy recommendations on topics related to responsible business conduct.
Increasingly, other committees and working groups at the OECD are exploring applying an RBC lens to their work, such as the Development Assistance Committee and the Export Credits Group. OECD Watch is promoting integration of RBC principles into wider OECD policy development and engaging with these bodies and initiatives. More fundamentally, we are also working to elevate and formalise voice for civil society on issues relevant to business conduct across the OECD.
OECD Watch is the official civil society advisory body to the OECD Investment Committee. Alongside the Trade Union Advisory Committee (TUAC) and Business at OECD (BIAC), we represent our respective constituencies within the OECD’s institutional framework for the Guidelines.
OECD Watch participates in consultations, meetings, and policy discussions and provides input to the OECD, NCPs, and governments on responsible business conduct. We use this access to bring civil society perspectives and the experiences of communities affected by business activities into OECD policy discussions.
The OECD Guidelines’ Implementation Procedures also give OECD Watch specific roles within the NCP system. Together with TUAC and BIAC, we can:
These mechanisms provide formal avenues for the OECD’s institutional stakeholder groups to raise questions about the interpretation of the Guidelines and the functioning of the NCP system.
What are the OECD Guidelines and who do they apply to? Learn more about the responsible business conduct standards enshrined in the Guidelines and how civil society can use them.
Learn how countries become OECD members and discover how civil society can engage in accession processes to push governments towards stronger responsible business conduct policies.
National Contact Points (NCPs) are government-established offices that promote the OECD Guidelines and hear complaints against companies alleged not to have followed them.
Last week, OECD Watch joined governments, businesses, trade unions and civil society from around the world in Paris for the OECD’s Responsible Business Conduct Week, marking the 50th anniversary of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational…
A new OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible AI falls short of expectations, but still provides a useful resource. During the 2023 revision of the OECD Guidelines, OECD Watch members fought hard for new expectations…
Export credit agencies play a significant role in global trade – but their involvement in human rights and the environmental harm has often gone unchecked. The OECD is offering new footholds for accountability. Here’s what’s…
OECD Watch and 130 NGOs from a broad range of groups have signed a letter calling for a greater civil society role in OECD policymaking and meaningful implementation of the OECD Guidelines in law. In…