Addressing the gender dimensions of business and human rights

This summary report presents some of the highlights and key themes emerging from a series of online learning exchanges which the DIHR hosted in November 2020. The discussions focused on select gender dimensions of business and human rights (BHR), namely:

1. Gender in the digital transition in Eastern-South­ern Africa;
2. Gender in processes for the development of National Action Plans on Business and Human Rights (NAPs); and
3. Connecting feminist approaches and BHR.

The objectives of the learning exchanges were to foster the greater integration of existing knowledge on gender into the field of BHR; promote exchange and collaboration between practitioners and researchers actively working on the intersection of gender and BHR, with a view to enhancing the future direction of both practice- and research-based activities and outputs; and collectively identify key engagement opportunities for addressing the gender dimensions of BHR.

Each exchange consisted of three to four small groups working in 90-minute sessions; where time zone coordination allowed, the small groups had a joint feedback session. Participants included representatives from civil society, national human rights institutions, government, business, multilateral institutions and academia, working from practice and research perspectives on the intersection of gender and BHR.

This report is intended to serve as a resource document for those who participated in the exchanges, as well as the BHR community more broadly, to further strengthen the gender dimensions of BHR.