2018 United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights

Short description of the presentation:
The problems surrounding the lack of sanitation and the notorious consequences of such inadequacies for women’s rights correlate directly to inadequate investment in universalizing these services. Building water and sewage systems in cities that currently lack sanitation services significantly advances human rights, especially for women. This is what happened to the women of Uruguaiana, a city in Brazil’s southernmost state. The presentation will focus on how investments in sanitation over the last eight years, have been made in a human rights compliant manner, including through mapping and analyzing social vulnerabilities before disbursing, and impact analysis to ensure residents have benefited from the investments made. The presentation will also explain how the active multi-stakeholders engagement made this turnaround possible.

Presentation objectives:
Using the study entitled “Sanitation and the Lives of Brazilian Women” and presenting the case of “Uruguaiana” to showcase how investment in sanitation services significantly advances human rights, especially for women. It will also show how engagement efforts and environmental education contributes to viewing sanitation services as a basic right to which all peoples are fully entitled.

Interpretation is provided in English and Spanish

Description of the presentation:
This “snapshot” presentation will outline the economic argument for why business should be concerned about the global crackdown on civic rights and civil society. In October, The B Team released The Business Case for Protecting Civic Rights, to examine the economic impact of respect for civic rights and civic space. The Business Case for Protecting Civic Rights utilises data from the Varieties of Democracy Institute (V-Dem) to augment the business case for action and explore how a better business environment is linked to greater civic rights and freedoms.

Presentation objectives: 
We plan to speak alongside a company representative that can explain why the protection of civic rights is important to their business operations and their commitment to the UN Guiding Principles