MONDAY | 20 MARCH
All times listed in Nepal Standard Time (GMT+5:45)
11:00-11:30
Welcome remarks: Hanaa Singer-Hamdy, UN Resident Coordinator, Nepal
Opening remarks: Shanker Das Bairagi, Chief Secretary, Government of Nepal
Keynote address: Pichamon Yeophantong, Chair, UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights
11:30-12:30
HIGH LEVEL OPENING PLENARY
Workers and Employers in Asia: Progress, Challenges, and Opportunities
13:30-14:45
GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAINS PLENARY
Strengthening Resilience in Asian Supply Chains
The session aims to provide a brief overview of some of the main trends, challenges and opportunities related to protecting and respecting the rights of workers in South Asian supply chains.
15:15-16:30
Government Action on Promoting Responsible Business in South Asia: Developing and Moving Beyond NAPs
The session seeks to assess government progress and challenges in implementing the UNGPs in South Asia, discuss the value of meaningful stakeholder engagement and inclusion and discuss ongoing NAP processes in this respect. The session will also look ahead and evaluate how governments and other stakeholders can promote business respect for human rights beyond NAPs in the foreseeable future.
This session will explore how current transformations will impact future prospects for young workers, and what policies and actions need to put in place now to ensure the adequate protection of young workers. It will also look at the youth perspective on these issues.
16:30-17:45
In this session, IPHRDs from India, Bangladesh and Nepal of the IPHRD Network in Asia will share their experiences on the panel. They will share their selected cases related to BHR on Indigenous Peoples and share experience on how to work with cases and provide some recommendations to the forum. AIPP will share regional overview of the situation of IPs in relation to business and human rights.
TUESDAY | 21 MARCH
09:00-10:30
MIGRATION PLENARY
The Future of Migration in South Asia
This session intends to explore the shifting dynamics of migration in South Asia, identifying the drivers behind these economic, social, technological, and environmental trends and changes, analyze how risks and vulnerabilities faced by migrants have evolved in parallel, and recommend measures to protect their human rights. The session will explore policy options for migration that is safe, dignified and sustainable and protects the human rights of migrants.
11:00-12:15
MIGRATION
GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAINS
The session aims to amplify Global South voices on mHRDD. Panelists and participants will explore the effect of mHRDD legislation on South Asia, to what extent ongoing legislative trends in the Global North integrate Global South perspectives.
This session will look at ways and means to protect migrant workers through fair and ethical recruitment practices and sustainable return and reintegration.
12:15-13:15
In this session, a 14-minute documentary tilted ‘Business with Purpose: India and Sustainable Economic Development.’ will be screened first to set the context on India’s Business and Human journey so far – capturing its priorities, challenges and watershed moments. This will be followed by a discussion with 2 speakers (featuring in the documentary) further exploring the challenges and the way forward on business and human rights in India.
While governments in many countries have touted developing a NAP as a significant step in implementing its obligations under the UNGPs, Indigenous Peoples and other marginalized groups are often left out of the process of developing such a document. Ideally, indigenous peoples and other marginalized groups should be at the center of the process to develop a NAP and in the outcomes of the NAP towards greater respect for their rights. This side event aims to promote such cross-learning among representatives of Indigenous Peoples and other marginalized groups from Pakistan, India and Nepal as well as other countries attending the Forum and beyond
13:30-15:00
JUST TRANSITIONS PLENARY
Transitioning to a Just and Fair World – What’s at Stake
The session aims to provide an overview of the concept of “just transitions”, provide examples of how this concept can be applied to various economic transitions, and outline potential impacts on workers in South Asia, including by hearing from workers and their representatives themselves. Moreover, the session will stimulate debate among panelists and speakers on the specific impacts faced by workers, and what governments and businesses can do to ensure that economic transitions are grounded in a human rights based approach.
15:30-16:45
INFORMAL/GIG WORKERS
This session will discuss examples of initiatives pursuing coordinated and integrated pathways towards the formalization of jobs and businesses. It will also reflect on the challenges to upholding human rights in business operations in the informal economy and what could be meaningful ways to address them.
This session will bring together expert speakers to discuss the various challenges faced by workers migrating in the context of climate change, whilst considering how their rights can be protected and respected by States and businesses, respectively.
16:45-18:00
JUST TRANSITIONS
GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAINS
People across South Asia are championing sustainable solutions to the climate crisis, despite risks. This session will explore the vital role of climate, land, and environmental defenders in advocating for responsible business practice and a just transition to green economies.
This session will provide an important platform for sharing knowledge and experiences on applying an intersectional approach to human rights due diligence in a supply chain. The session seeks to raise awareness about the importance of identifying and addressing the multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and inequality in supply chains through due diligence processes and inspire action towards more gender-responsive and resilient supply chains.
WEDNESDAY | 22 MARCH
To commemorate the tenth anniversary of the Rana Plaza Building collapse in Bangladesh, the session will analyse the success of the Bangladesh Accord for Fire and Building Safety (the Accord) and the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety (the Alliance). The panellists will share their views on what lessons could be learnt from the Accord and Alliance to make factories safer in other sourcing countries in South Asia and how the lessons from RMG could be replicated/adapted to other sectors such as leather, fisheries and construction.
11:00-12:15
INFORMAL/GIG WORKERS
This session will provide an important platform for sharing knowledge and experiences on applying an intersectional approach to human rights due diligence in a supply chain. The session seeks to raise awareness about the importance of identifying and addressing the multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and inequality in supply chains through due diligence processes and inspire action towards more gender-responsive and resilient supply chains.
In this session, speakers will discuss the interconnections between land insecurity, (internal) displacement, and forced migration within the context of business and human rights in South Asia. In so doing, the session will highlight the under-documented experiences of Indigenous Peoples who are forced to migrate and who are pushed into precarious work, especially in urban areas. It will also underscore the drivers of these dynamics, together with how protections and safeguards can be afforded to Indigenous Peoples who are especially at risk.
12:15-13:15
SIDE SESSION
Access to Remedy in South Asia: Supply Chain Grievance Mechanisms, a Practical Perspective and Look Forward
This session will showcase how different parties and initiatives can work together to provide the best access to remedy in a resource-efficient manner. Panelists will share learnings from their own experience in South Asia, but also some key challenges they faced in implementing access to remedy across supply chains. The panel will also explore how collaborations between companies but also between mechanisms and initiatives can enable more effective remedy and avoid duplication for the rights holders.
This side event seeks to present Indigenous Peoples’ experiences from the ground affected by hydropower and other projects touted as “clean” and “green” energy projects. The Indigenous Peoples’ representatives will share their perspectives and aspirations with such projects to explain what transitions should look like.
13:30-14:45
MIGRATION
This session compares TLMPs and international human rights standards, including the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and suggests what alternatives are possible and what human rights-based labour migration pathways look like. While TLMPs are often discussed through the lens of labour rights, their impact on a wider range of human rights of migrant workers and of their families as well as their experiences beyond the workplace have received less attention.
This session offers the possibility to connect business and community resilience with the promotion of responsible business conduct and workers fueling development as well as emergency preparedness in South Asia. It will provide a safe space to discuss how and where to engage the private sector to build up youth/community (but also business) resilience in emergency preparedness and response, as well as development settings in South Asia.
15:15-16:30
JUST TRANSITIONS
During this session, panellists from diverse backgrounds and sectors will come together to present their views and reflect on how the new instrument can advance efforts to achieve a just transition towards a sustainable economy and ensure that its implementation does not translate into further negative impacts on people disproportionately impacted by plastic pollution.
INFORMAL/GIG WORKERS
This session will explore the range of challenges that women working in the unregulated sector often face, including low pay, poor working conditions, and limited job security. Owing to cultural perceptions of women’s status in society, many are also at a higher risk of sexual harassment and discrimination, particularly in industries where women are underrepresented. The unregulated nature of the work often limits women’s access to benefits such as health insurance and overtime pay, making it difficult for them to support themselves and their families. Additionally, the lack of oversight and legal protections only increases their chances of being exploited by employers and makes it more challenging for them to advocate for their rights and seek justice.
16:30-17:30