Corporate Accountability

Companies have a duty to respect the rights of people involved in their business and supply chain.

Accountability is about being responsible and taking responsibility. According to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, companies have a duty to respect the human rights of the people involved in their business and supply chain. When companies engage in a meaningful dialogue with their stakeholders, the benefits can be far-reaching for the private sector and society.

Multi Stakeholder Initiative

Together with partners and allies, Oxfam Novib has engaged companies, governments, and investors and urged them to take a proactive role in poverty reduction. We work with companies, often through a Multi Stakeholder Initiative (MSI), to help improve standards. We hold accountable to ensure that commitments are upheld.

When companies fall short of the standards they have set, we are well positioned to challenge them through dialogue, lobby and campaigning. We make use of global media, popular mobilisation, and roundtable discussion with key stakeholders to achieve our objectives. Read more about our Multi-stakeholders engagement in agribusiness sectors (pdf).

Sustainable Business

We support local organisations to play an active and critical ‘watchdog’ role in their countries and at the international level. We assist them to enter into a dialogue with companies about corporate policies and practices.

We believe that companies should be aware of the positive and negative impact they have on society. Oxfam wants to work with those companies that try to realize their sustainability ambitions and are eager to learn more about their present impact and ways to improve their policies and practices. Read more about working with Oxfam on corporate accountability (pdf).