Japan's first National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights (NAP 1.0) in 2020 and the 2022 Guidelines on Respecting Human Rights in Responsible Supply Chains have driven measurable improvements in human rights due diligence implementation.

While progress has been made, further efforts are needed to deepen implementation and ensure consistency across companies. Japan’s revised National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights (NAP 2.0) offers an opportunity to set clearer expectations, strengthen transparency, and promote accountability through tools such as third-party benchmarks and public disclosure.

This policy note, jointly prepared by the World Benchmarking Alliance and the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, analyses Corporate Human Rights Benchmark data and offers recommendations for NAP 2.0.