As the official U.S. affiliate of Business at OECD (BIAC), USCIB praised BIAC on its promotion of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (MNE Guidelines) last week during a high-level conference that it organized in Paris. In a recent statement, BIAC noted that it views the responsible conduct of companies across markets as stipulated by the MNE Guidelines to be an integral part of an open investment environment, while stressing the need for practical and manageable expectations.

USCIB’s Vice President for Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs Gabriella Rigg Herzog praised BIAC’s commitment noting, “USCIB supports the OECD Guidelines and the comprehensive framework of responsible business conduct practices they represent. We welcome BIAC’s strong commitment to promoting the OECD Guidelines and encouraging their implementation.”  

The OECD Guidelines include a unique implementation mechanism in the form of National Contact Points (NCP). “The experience with the NCP system has been mixed,” said Winand Quaedvlieg, chair of the BIAC Committee on Investment and Responsible Business Conduct. “In some cases, it had a clear added value for companies, in other cases it was criticized. It is therefore important to have a common understanding among all stakeholders about the nature of the NCP process as a platform for mediation and problem-solving in good faith, which is different from legal litigation.”

USCIB will continue to support BIAC as it works with the OECD to underline the conditions that must be in place to facilitate the proactive engagement of business in the process.