The HRCA was developed through a long, thorough and rigorous research and consultation process that brought the worlds of business, human rights and corporate social responsibility organisations, research institutes, and multilateral organisations together. The process was started in 1999 and the HRCA went online in 2005.
The first step consisted of thorough research into the full body of international law to develop the content of the HRCA standards. Next a yearlong consultation process was initiatied in May 2003, which was funded by the EU Directorate-General for Employment and Social Affairs. The purpose of the process was to refine the HRCA standards and ensure their compatibility with both the business world and human rights NGO community. Participants from a wide range of companies, human rights organisations, corporate social responsibility organisations, research institutes and universities were invited to review the HRCA standards and provide suggestions for modification. Companies involved in the consultations included large corporations and small enterprises, representatives from the extractive, pharmaceutical, chemical, food and beverage, telecommunications, manufacturing and apparel sectors were represented. This broad and wide-ranging participation resulted in a multifaceted and comprehensive review of the HRCA, and ensured that the tool reflected a wider consensus within the business and human rights communities. The consultation process consisted of expert reviews, 40 dialogue reviews, a development bank conference, and a specialist committee meeting. Expert Reviews - Human rights experts were recruited to review and evaluate the HRCA standards. They were selected for their specialised human rights expertise, and brought extensive knowledge on labour, economic, social and cultural rights, and vulnerable groups.
Dialogue Reviews - 40 teams of paired company and NGO representatives reviewed the questions during dialogue reviews. The purpose of pairing company and NGO representative together was to create a balance between the different interests of companies and NGOs. Following the dialogue review, each team met with a representative from the Human Rights and Business Project to discuss suggestions for modification,and the agreed changes were incorporated into the HRCA.
HRCA Specialist Committee Meeting - After the Dialogue Reviews, the controversial or outstanding issues in the HRCA questions were reviewed by the HRCA Specialist Committee Meeting in April 2004, in which five representatives from human rights groups and five from the business community met to resolve the remaining issues.
The HRCA went online was updated and reprogrammed in 2008-2009, and undergoes continuous updates to stay at the cutting edge of the human rights and business field. The HRCA was originally designed and developed by Dr. Margaret Jungk at the Danish Institute for Human Rights. The tool’s development was sponsored by Danida, the Confederation of Danish Industries, and the Industrialization Fund for Developing Countries. The development of the HRCA computer programme was sponsored by the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group. | | 
The Human Rights and Business Department is the world’s largest business-focused team of human rights specialists. We maintain the institutional backing of a leading National Human Rights Institution and a network of more than 100 human rights organizations around the world. The Human Rights and Business Department and The Danish Institute for Human Rights are nonprofit organisations. All proceeds go directly to research and related activities aimed at promoting and strengthening human rights worldwide. Contact information
Human Rights
and Business
Danish Institute
for Human Rights
Strandgade 56
1401 Copenhagen
T +45 3269 8888
HRCA@humanrights.dk
www.menneskeret.dk
www.humanrights.dk |