"Japan to seek ILO support in firms' human rights risk management" 22 November 2021

The Japanese government plans to help companies operating global supply chains ramp up efforts to protect human rights in collaboration with [...] the International Labour Organization, sources familiar with the matter said Monday.

The aim is to ensure Japanese companies are informed and have staff who are trained to identify and address risks and violations of human rights in their global supply chains by adopting so-called human rights due diligence.

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Under the plan, the Japanese government is expected to provide funding to the ILO, which will dispatch experts in international labour laws to companies with business operations in Asia and assist them in creating human rights due diligence systems with external oversight, the sources said. Manufacturers are expected to be the main targets of such efforts.

At the same time, the government will contract private firms for research on existing guidelines abroad on human rights due diligence, the sources said.

Some 800 million yen ($7 million) is expected to be earmarked for the plan in a to-be-compiled supplementary budget for the current fiscal year through next March, the sources added.

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