Mexico

Is developing a NAP Latest business and human rights news in Mexico A business and human rights guide to Mexico

NAP Development Process

Status

In December 2020, Mexico launched a National Human Rights Program 2020-2024 (Programa Nacional de Derechos Humanos 2020-2024, PNDH) with a chapter on business and human rights.

Prior to this, the government attempted to develop a specific National Action Plan on Business and Human rights (NAP) between 2015-18, which ultimately did not come to fruition. Information on this process is also included below.

In 2022, Mexico, begun a new process to develop a NAP and is currently working developing a national baseline assessment.

Process

Attempts to develop a specific BHR NAP (2015-2018)

The Mexican Secretariat of the Interior’s (Secretaría de Gobernación) website notes that the first official commitment to implement the UNGPs in Mexico was articulated in the 2014-2018 National Human Rights Program (PNDH), under strategy point 4.4 ‘the need to Promote human rights and gender in the private sector, as well as in business policies and activities’. The actions being:

Strengthening mechanisms aimed at guaranteeing business respect for human rights.
Encouraging companies to disseminate human rights and include them in their declarations of principles, codes and policies.
Promoting the human rights-based approach in corporate social responsibility.
Promoting that the legislation that regulates companies guarantees respect for human rights.
Help companies know their human rights obligations with respect to their workers and users.

At the time this commitment was articulated, the ‘Focal Group on Business and Human Rights’ was created to advocate for the adoption of a NAP in Mexico. This group was formed by Centro Mexicano de Derecho Ambiental (CEMDA); Centro de Información sobre Empresas y Derechos Humanos (CIEDH); Comité de Defensa Integral de Derechos Humanos Gobixha (Código DH); Oxfam México; Proyecto de Derechos Económicos, Sociales y Culturales (ProDESC); Proyecto sobre Organización, Desarrollo, Educación e Investigación (PODER); acompañada por: Asociación Interamericana para la Defensa del Ambiente (AIDA); Brigadas Internacionales de Paz (PBI) and Servicios y Asesoría para la Paz (Serapaz).

To implement the actions in the PNDH, on September 2, 2015, the Secretariat of the Interior’s (Secretaría de Gobernación) in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, launched the National Working Group on Business and Human Rights (in Spanish), which was comprised of representatives of federal public administration, legislative and judicial branches, civil society organisations (including the Focal Group on Business and Human Rights) as well as business actors, academia, international organisations, trade unions and the National Commission for Human Rights.

Following this, the Mexican Government formally committed to a BHR NAP development process during the UN Annual Forum on Business and Human Rights in December 2015. A work plan was initially established that included conducting a diagnosis on the situation of human rights and business in Mexico, as well as the definition of contents, objectives, strategies and lines of action for the NAP. The work plan contemplated consultation and socialisation spaces throughout all stages of the process. However, the work plan was not made public.

In April 2016, the Secretariat of the Interior’s (Secretaría de Gobernación) signed a memorandum of understanding with the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR) with the aim of providing technical advice on the process, build the capacity of state and business actors and develop the Human Rights and Business Country Guide to Mexico.

In parallel, in October 2016, the Mexican Focal Group on Business and Human Rights authored and launched the Mexican National Baseline Assessment (NBA) (in Spanish). The government accepted the NBA and supported its dissemination by hosting a public event after the NBA had been finalised in November 2016.

In September 2016, the UN Working Group on business and human rights undertook a country mission to Mexico, where they met with all stakeholder groups to identify, assess and address the main human rights impacts of business. Many of the recommendations made by the UN Working Group to government were subsequently taken up in the draft NAP.

The draft NAP was developed based on contributions and recommendations made by governmental actors and experts, academics, civil society organisations and international organisations, which were gathered through national and regional forums, thematic workshops, Working Group meetings, and through written submissions. The NBA and Country Guide were also considered during the drafting process. Moreover, in June 2017, the Mexican government submitted the draft for online consultation.

Soon after a second draft of the NAP was published in July 2017, the civil society Focal Group decided to formally leave the process, and in particular, the multi-stakeholder Working Group, citing concerns over the lack alignment of the draft with recommendations made by civil society. Some civil society organisations in the focal group remained informally engaged in the process with the aim of improving the draft NAP.

The NAP launch date was postponed given demands of various stakeholders to ensure greater dialogue and participation. Between September and October 2018, after several months of inactivity due to the electoral process and changes in government posts, the main business association of Mexico (Consejo Coordinador Empresarial) developed and signed a MoU with the Secretariat of the Interior’s (Secretaría de Gobernación), that aimed to “replace” the other process and be adopted as a NAP. It was agreed at some point between October and November 2018, prior to the presidential transition. The process went silent as no action was taken afterwards to implement the MoU.

Developing the National Human Rights Programme (2019 – 2020)

The process of developing Mexico’s National Human Righ ts Programme (PNDH) was conducted through an inter-institutional planning and coordination effort led by the Undersecretary for Human Rights, Population and Migration, through the General Directorate for Human Rights Public Policy (DGPPDH).

Screen shot 2021 06 10 at 13.51.15 This process began on 12 June 2019, when the Secretary of Government, Dr. Olga Sánchez Cordero, together with the Undersecretary for Human Rights, Population and Migration, Mr. Alejandro Encinas Rodríguez, initiated the work. In in August 2019, a multistakeholder consultation on BHR for the NHRP was held in Monterrey, Mexico, organized by the Secretariat of the Interior’s (Secretaría de Gobernación). And, after a two phase process (consultative and technical) the National Human Rights Programme was published on 10 December 2020 in the Official Journal of the Federation.

The final NAP document included a specific section focused on promoting public policies aimed at the prevention and mitigation of adverse impact caused by private, public or mixed business activities. However, other BHR related content was found across sections.

Stakeholder Participation

Attempts to develop a specific BHR NAP (2015-2018)

A multi-stakeholder Working Group on Human Rights and Business comprised of state institutions, civil society, business, and academia was set up at the start of the NAP process. This group met periodically to provide input and comment on the development, as well as the content, of the draft NAP. In turn, the participants shared insights into the process and its development with a broader range of actors within their respective shareholder groups.

A group of seven civil society organisations formed the Mexican Focal Group on Business and Human Rights to advocate for the creation of a NAP in Mexico. This group, which later grew to include over nine organisations, authored the Mexican NBA, and formed part of the Working Group.

The recommendations submitted by the expanded civil society focal group can be found here (in Spanish).

Beyond multi-stakeholder participation in the working group and in the elaboration of the NBA, the draft NAP was also submitted for online consultation in June 2017.

Developing the National Human Rights Programme (2019 – 2020)

According to the information provided in the Secretariat of the Interior’s (Secretaría de Gobernación) website, in the first phase of the NAP development (Consultative Stage), 14 Thematic Forums (one specifically on Business and Human Rights) were held in 11 federal entities, as a result of 2,050 hours of planning and 2,561 invitations issued, with the participation of 2,383 public servants from the three levels of government, civil society, international organisations, academia, indigenous communities, experts and representatives of the private sector.

The Forums became spaces for consultation and deliberation where interested actors freely presented their ideas and proposals during 114 effective hours of work, in 69 total thematic tables, which gave as their main input 89 reports, which together with the internal and external diagnoses and the international recommendations, gave meaning and support to the general structure of the Programme.

In the second part of the work (Technical Stage), the Strategies and Lines of Action of the 5 Priority Objectives were submitted for review and consultation over the course of 31 working groups and with the participation of 656 participants from the Federal Public Administration agencies involved, experts, academia and civil society, which resulted in the improvement of the actions and the definition of the authorities and agencies responsible for their implementation and follow-up.

Transparency

Attempts to develop a specific BHR NAP (2015-2018)

Documents relating to the NAP development, including the draft NAP, have been published by the Mexican government online, as has an initial program of work (in Spanish).

Developing the National Human Rights Programme (2019 – 2020)

Both a citizen’s guide and the final version of the NAP have been published by the Mexican government online (available in Spanish here: http://derechoshumanos.gob.mx/Programa_Nacional) However, no draft NAP was published.

National Baseline Assessment (NBA)

Attempts to develop a specific BHR NAP (2015-2018)

In October 2016, the Mexican NBA was elaborated by the civil society Focal Group on Human Rights and Business. The document is 350 pages long and includes an executive summary to highlight the main findings.

The government accepted the NBA and supported its dissemination by hosting a public event after the NBA has been finalised in November 2016. Government actors, business representatives, and civil society organisations were invited to learn more about the different documents created to inform the NAP process.

UNICEF, with support of DLA Piper, led the creation of a thematic supplement to the NBA in relation to children’s rights and NAPs. UNICEF utilised a thematic baseline supplement on children’s rights and NBAs authored by their own organisation in collaboration with the DIHR and ICAR.

Developing the National Human Rights Programme (2019 – 2020)

Information in this section is drawn from work done by Poder project.

Diagnóstico de línea suplemento In 2019, the Civil Society Focal Group on Business and Human Rights in Mexico prepared a supplementary document framed within the Baseline Diagnosis for the implementation in Mexico of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights published in October 2016. This document was conceived as a living instrument that could be updated through the inputs provided by the different relevant actors in the field of business and human rights. Although the government did not respond publicly to the document, it is being considered for the follow-up actions.

The supplement aimed at compiling legislative and political advances in the area of business and human rights while incorporating the gender perspective and update the pre-existing gaps in the implementation of the business and human rights agenda. The preparation of the text covers the period from October 2016 to May 2019. It is configured as a diagnostic and consultative tool that serves as an input to guide and identify actions and standards that should be included in the PNEDH or other public policy instrument, in order to harmonize existing policies and norms in Mexico with the Guiding Principles.