Day 3 | 22 September

SESSION 2:

Asia and the Future of Globalization: Business and human rights in perspective

10:45-12:00 ICT

Background

In recent years, the pace and enthusiasm for economic integration has been tempered by a reassessment of the costs and benefits of globalization. Business leaders are far more cognizant of the operational risks posed by just-in-time production and longtail supply chains. Neo-liberal policy experts are far less confident that open markets will lead to stronger levels of international cooperation, respect for human rights and environmental stewardship. Transparency, resilience, and security are suddenly the leading features of a new chapter in global economic history. Yet, the implications for Asia, which has benefited enormously from globalization, are not well-understood.

In this moment, Business and Human Rights (BHR) champions are playing a larger role in shaping the direction of international trade and investment policy. Legislators, investors and consumers are joining advocates calling for greater respect for the environment, labor rights and land rights in global supply chains. But have BHR champions been fully cognizant of the costs their agenda imposes on Asian business, especially in the face of rising inflation, mass redundancies and a scarcity of essential goods in multiple regions? Or is the wider and deeper embrace of BHR principles the very thing that will drive new levels of growth, and save globalization, if indeed it is worth saving?

In this session, “Asia and the Future of Globalization: Business and Human Rights in Perspective,” speakers will assess the implications of responsible business practice in Asia’s supply chains. How might Asia be shaped—in both positive and negative terms—by new proposals from multiple markets limiting entry to products involving forced labor, deforestation risks or fast-fashion production techniques? What challenges, financial and otherwise, might environmental and human rights due diligence place on Asian businesses still reeling from COVID-19 lockdowns? How will a redesign of globalization be informed, if at all, by greater levels of respect for human rights and the environment, and what are the tradeoffs?

Objectives

The key objectives of this session are to:

Detail how trade and investment patterns have shifted in Asia in the last ten years, and the implications for Asia in terms of future growth, poverty reduction and technology and skills transfer
Provide views on the impact of BHR agenda on today’s reassessment of globalization; demonstrate how trade policy can act as a lever for greater human rights respect
Conclude with an assessment of the possible pathway forward for the BHR agenda in Asia, and the trade-offs of staying the current path

Guiding Questions

Panelists will participate in a dialogue and thus be afforded limited space for presentations. Instead, participants will reflect on the following questions but also react to more pointed remarks made by fellow participants, the moderator and the audience:

Why is globalization facing such strong headwinds, and what might current trends mean for Asia in terms of economic growth, job creation, poverty reduction, rates of innovation, and the enjoyment of human rights?
Can international trade and investment policy facilitate growth that is informed by human rights values, or is success unlikely given the intensity of current geopolitical and economic challenges?
What are the strengths, shortcomings and potential pitfalls of the current approach taken by champions of the BHR agenda in Asia? Will the BHR agenda lead to greater resilience and much needed transparency, or to heavier and more complicated regulatory burdens? In light of current economic challenges in the region does an accelerated or incremental approach make more sense?

Day1 programme

SPEAKERS

Phang Oy Cheng

Ms. Phang Oy Cheng is Head of Sustainability Advisory with KPMG Malaysia.
She has 30 years of experience in sustainability consulting in AsiaPacific, namely Malaysia, Thailand and Australia. She has worked in the area of human rights since 2016, starting with the Australian Modern Slavery Act and sincere turning to Malaysia has successfully established KPMG Malaysia’s human rights advisory services. Apart from that Oy Cheng is very familiar with the requirements of international investors, and the requirements of the GRI, DJSI, FTSE4Good, CDP, TCFD as well as other internationally recognised guidelines.

Joyce Chau

Ms Joyce Chau joined amfori as the Country Representative of the organization in Greater China in June 2011. Her role is to promote sustainable trade through sustainability services including business social compliance (amfori BSCI), environmental performance (amfori BEPI), quality management capability (amfori QMI) and trade policy along the global supply chains.

Since Jan 2019, Ms Chau has been promoted to Director Asia Pacific and leads the APAC team to drive open and sustainable trade in the region.

In around 30 years, Ms Chau’s major expertise is in public affairs, stakeholder and media relations crisis and issues management related to sustainability, CSR, and supply chain management. Prior to amfori, she was the Senior Vice President of the HSBC Corporate Sustainability APAC Office, Dell China’s Corporate Communications Director and she also worked for HKSAR Government’ Innovation and Technology Commission, HK Airport Authority and GS1. She possesses a BSoSc in Communications and a Master of Arts in Translation.

Namit Agarwal

Namit Agarwal is the Social Transformation Lead at the World Benchmarking Alliance (WBA), and leads WBA’s work on human rights, gender, decent work and ethical action. Before WBA, Namit worked with Oxfam India, CARE India, and Samhita Social Ventures in the areas of advocacy, campaigning, program design and communication. He is a member of India’s National Human Rights Commission core group on Business, Environment and Human Rights, Chair of Fair Finance Asia Advisory Committee, and member of GRI South Asia Charter Steering Committee. He is a postgraduate in Public Policy and has an MBA in marketing. Namit brings over a decade’s experience in influencing public policy on issues of transparency, accountability, human rights, and gender.

Seree Nonthasoot

Dr. Seree Nonthasoot is the Senior Executive Vice President of the Institute for Research and Development for Public Enterprises (IRDP) in Bangkok. He is an expert in human rights, international law, corporate governance and public and private partnerships (PPPs). In 2020, he was appointed for a four-year term (2021-2024) by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) as a member of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

In his previous position as the Representative of Thailand to the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (2013-2018), he initiated the programmatic work that led to the adoption of the ASEAN Enabling Masterplan 2025 to mainstream the rights of persons with disabilities in the ASEAN Communities, and the Bangkok Business and Human Rights Week that included the Interregional Dialogue on Business and Human Rights which brought to the fore the essential nexus between institutional investors, ESG policies and human rights promotion and protection, especially in the ASEAN region. He has advised the Ministry of Justice on the development of the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights and the creation of the national award for business enterprises that implement the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs). He also led the thematic studies on legal aid systems in ASEAN Member States.

Dr. Nonthasoot teaches at various institutions, including Mahidol and Thammasat Universities, on the subject of human rights and law. He obtains his doctoral degree from Oxford University, Master Degree (LL.M.) in international law from Columbia University (Fulbright Scholarship), and Bachelor Degree in law (LL.B.) from Thammasat University.

Stephen Olson

Mr. Olson is currently a Senior Research Fellow at the Hinrich Foundation where he conducts analysis and provides commentary on a range of trade and globalization issues. He is quoted regularly in leading publications such as the Wall Street Journal and the NY Times and has appeared on BBC, CNBC, Bloomberg, and other major networks. He is also a member of the World Economic Forum Global Futures Council for International Trade. He began his career in Washington DC as an international trade negotiator and served on the US negotiating team for the NAFTA negotiations. He subsequently became president of the Hong Kong-based Pacific Basin Economic Council, and vice-chairman of Cairo-based ARTOC Group for investment and development. He was previously a visiting scholar at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He has a master’s degree in international relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and a B.A. from the State University of New York.

Sean Lees

Sean Lees is a Business and Human Rights Specialists at UNDP. He is a lawyer and human rights specialist, with a background in trade policy and humanitarian affairs. Prior to his admission to legal practice, Sean worked for the Pacific Basin Economic Council and the East-West Center on Asia-Pacific trade and investment issues. He then expanded his field of interest, working with refugees and displaced populations as an attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice, and then as a programme manager for the International Rescue Committee. Sean joined the United Nations in 2007 where he focused primarily on rule of law programming in Africa, Asia and the Pacific.

United Nations Responsible Business and Human Rights Forum, Asia-Pacific