Session co-organized by the Working Group on Business and Human Rights, the Polish Institute for Human Rights and Business (PL), Y. Mudryi National Law University (UA), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
Interpretation provided in English, Chinese and Russian.
Brief description of the session:
Central and Eastern European and Central Asian countries are increasingly taking action to address the adverse impacts of business activities on people and the environment. This trend is being amplified by their varying levels of integration with the European Union—whether as EU member states, countries aspiring for accession, or due to close economic, political and other ties. With the adoption of EU regulations, particularly the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), due diligence requirements in the EU AI Act and CoE Framework Convention on AI and Human Rights, as well as national human rights due diligence requirements in countries like France and Germany, Central and Eastern European and Central Asian countries are facing new expectations.
This session will explore the practical implications of these recent European legal developments on how business is done in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia, from the perspectives of multiple stakeholders. It will focus on how governments are adapting their domestic legal frameworks to align with the new legally binding standards, and how businesses are preparing to meet these new obligations, particularly regarding enhanced human rights due diligence, how AI could be used in human rights due diligence. Furthermore, the session will examine how rights holders in the region can leverage these regulatory developments to ensure their rights are respected and to access effective remedies.
Key objectives of the session:
Exchange insights on the challenges faced by businesses and governments in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia as they work to meet the new European regulatory requirements, share methodologies for implementation, emerging practices and common mistakes.
Discuss how rights holders, including workers, worker organizations, and civil society groups, can use these regulatory changes to promote better models at national level, demand accountability and access remedies for human rights abuses within the region.
