Foreword  3

Editorial  4

Executive summary  8

1 Introduction  13

References  16

2 How are companies implementing due diligence for responsible business conduct?  17

Committing to and embedding responsible business conduct into management systems  18

Identifying and assessing risks and impacts  26

Prevention, mitigation and remediation of impacts  33

Communicating on how impacts are addressed  42

References  44

Notes  47

3 How are governments promoting responsible business conduct?  49

Legal and regulatory frameworks to enable responsible business conduct  53

Encouraging responsible business conduct across key policy areas  61

Leading by example: Governments as economic and commercial actors  70

Promoting access to remedy  77

Co-ordinating policies and activities on responsible business conduct  81

References  83

Notes  90

4 Policy considerations  95

It is important that companies are sufficiently incentivised and enabled to carry out due diligence that is outcome-oriented  96

Companies need support in carrying out due diligence in their supply chains  96

Better reporting and tracking of responsible business practices, including due diligence is needed to understand impact and effectiveness  97

More robust evidence on the implementation and the impact of responsible business conduct policies is necessary to ensure objectives are being achieved  97

Co-operation on responsible business conduct-related policies is necessary to reduce complexity and promote a level playing field across jurisdictions  98

References  98

Annex A. Data  99