Now Available: Joint Business Position on the Binding Treaty Process

Please read the consolidated joint business position on the new 4th draft treaty for next week’s 9th session of the Open-Ended Intergovernmental Working Group (OEIGWG) to support your advocacy efforts.

The next session of the open-ended intergovernmental working group on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights will take place at Palais des Nations, in Geneva, from 23 to 27 October.   

IOE will represent business during next week’s negotiation. This year, the basis of negotiation will be a new 4th consolidated draft, consisting of a combination of last year’s Chair’s proposal and the 3rd revised draft treaty. 

To prepare at best the position of the business community, IOE prepared a joint business position on the 4th new draft. This document aims to support your advocacy efforts with your governments. 

Ahead of the 9th session, unfortunately, the minimal revisions introduced in the new updated draft LBI do not address the longstanding concerns consistently articulated by business and many governments to date. While we welcome the Chair's attempt to streamline the text and find common ground by merging his proposals with the 3rd draft treaty, including the comments of States during the 8th session, the content of the new draft continues to pose serious risks to legal certainty, economic development, trade and investment, increased productivity and competitiveness, and the sovereignty of States. 

Please find attached in the “Resources” section the following documents: 

• Joint business position on the new 4th draft legally binding instrument 

• New 4th draft of the legally binding instrument with track changes

Please do not hesitate to reach out to Jason Pegat-Toquet (pegat-toquet(at)ioe-emp.com) or Altea Rossi (rossi(at)ioe-emp.com) should you have any questions.