OECD Watch
OECD Watch

Background

OECD Watch, which aims to help facilitate NGO activities around the OECD Guidelines and the work of the OECD’s Committee on International Investment (IC), was established at a meeting in Amersfoort, the Netherlands, on March 20-22, 2003. Participants included representatives from Africa, Asia, Eastern and Western Europe, Latin America and North America. The 50 participants at this meeting agreed that the increasing work of NGOs worldwide on the OECD Guidelines required more cooperation.

Mission Statement

OECD Watch groups together NGOs from Europe, the Americas, Australia, Africa and Asia who share a common vision about the need for corporate accountability and sustainable investment. The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, which can neither impose sanctions nor offer compensation, are at present one of the few mechanisms available for holding companies to account. OECD Watch is committed to testing the Guidelines as part of the wider NGO campaign towards binding regulation of multinationals. Members of OECD Watch are committed to the following goals:

  • Monitoring and contributing to the work of the OECD’s Committee on International Investment;
  • Testing the effectiveness of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises as a corporate accountability tool;
  • Disseminating information to civil society groups, particularly in developing countries, about the work of the Investment Committee on international investment, corporate governance and the OECD Guidelines; and
  • Advising NGOs about filing complaints against companies alleged to have breached the OECD Guidelines.

Current members of the Coordination Committee are: Brotherhood of St. Laurence (Australia), IBASE (Brazil) - Germanwatch (Germany), Citizens for a Better Environment (Pakistan), SOMO (Netherlands), IRENE (Netherlands), Friends of the Earth Europe, Rights and Accountability in Development (UK) and the Wassa Association for Communities Affected by Mining (Ghana).

The Coordination Committee’s secretariat consists of SOMO, IRENE, RAID and Germanwatch, with SOMO as principal administrator responsible for coordinating the network and maintaining the web site.

OECD Watch’s relationship with the OECD

The OECD Investment Committee has acknowledged OECD Watch's contributions to the Committee's work. In the OECD's “CivSoc Newsletter”, OECD Watch was commended as a good example of NGO involvement. The OECD Investment Committee has also named OECD Watch “a partner in implementing OECD Guidelines”. In addition, the Investment Committee has asked for OECD Watch’s advice on interpreting the Guidelines and on requests forclarification from NCPs. OECD representatives have attended conferences organised by OECD Watch. including giving the keynote speech at OECD Watch’s Brussels Roundtable in April 2005.

Moreover, NCPs have welcomed the activities of OECD Watch, including OECD Watch's publications. Several have expressed their hope that NGOs would continue to work on the OECD Guidelines. NCPs have also been active participants at OECD Watch events. For example, OECD Watch’s roundtable in April 2005 was attended by nine NCPs, some of whom gave presentations in working group sessions.

OECD Watch’s relationship with governments

OECD Watch has also developed a strong relationship with many European governments. Government representatives and members of parliament from Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom have attended events organised by OECD Watch. OECD Watch has also reached out to Eastern European governments. Representatives from the Czech and Lithuanian governments attended the April 2005 conference in Brussels. There have also been a number of informal discussions with representatives from Slovakia and Romania. Furthermore, representatives of the European Commission have attended and spoken at OECD Watch events. OECD Watch has actively participated in several consultations with the UN Secretary General’s Special Representative on Business and Human Rights.

OECD Watch’s relationship with businesses

OECD Watch has reached out to businesses through a series of meetings and dialogues. Many businesses are eager to cooperate with OECD Watch in order to develop and improve their knowledge of the OECD Guidelines and their CSR practices. Businesses representatives from ABN AMRO, Allianz Group, Auchan, BP, De Beers, Iberdrola, ING Group, National Grid Transco, Shell, Total and Unilever have attended OECD Watch events and engaged in dialogues with OECD Watch members. In the Netherlands, OECD Watch members SOMO and IRENE hosted a dialogue session in 2006 that brought together representatives from ABN AMRO, Heineken, Nutreco, Berenschot, NBC Vermogensbeheer and the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs.

Development of the network

The OECD Watch network has grown rapidly since its inception in 2003. In total, there are 60 OECD Watch members from 33 different countries. OECD Watch has 5 Asian, 10 African, 9 Latin-American, 30 European, 3 North American and 3 Australian member organisations.As of August 2006, there are more than 500 contacts on the OECD Watch's database which is made up of NGOs, trade unions, businesses and governments/NCPs contacts.


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Update 10 November 2006 AD