Swedwatch Progress Report 2020 1 Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................. 3 1. About Swedwatch ........................................................................................................................... 5 Strategy and approach ........................................................................................................................ 6 Governance and operations ................................................................................................................ 9 2. Important organisational developments....................................................................................... 15 Organisational re-structuring and consolidation .............................................................................. 15 Strengthening approaches and outreach .......................................................................................... 16 Funding and new income streams .................................................................................................... 17 International engagements and partnerships ................................................................................... 17 3. Progress toward goals, January-December 2020 .......................................................................... 20 Responsible and equitable use of natural resources .................................................................... 24 Empowered rights holders and expanded civic space .................................................................. 43 Sustainable and fair global supply chains .......................................................................................... 54 4. Lessons learnt and going forward ..................................................................................................... 81 2 Executive Summary This report presents work conducted and results captured by Swedwatch in 2020, a year in which the world grappled to adapt to, and address the impacts of, the Covid-19 pandemic. While millions of people were pushed into poverty and efforts to tackle climate change stalled, mitigation measures adopted to contain the spread of the virus were in many contexts used to strengthen already strict restrictions on civil society. In response to this development, and to the organisational challenges that lockdowns and travel restrictions created, Swedwatch took on a flexible approach to continue to contribute to sustainable development and to promote positive change for rights holders. During the year, Swedwatch highlighted the grave situation facing human rights and environmental defenders (HREDs), urging companies and investors to step up efforts to respect and consult defenders in their operations. Furthermore, promoting sustainable natural resource management, Swedwatch engaged with communities affected by mining operations and natural rubber production in conflict-affected contexts. Based on its expertise and on research findings, Swedwatch also submitted recommendations to high-level consultations and policy processes and joined new networks with the aim to increase reach through strong alliances. Efforts to operationalise the 2019-2023 strategy continued, with a specific focus to increase a rights- based approach and a poverty perspective, as did further mainstreaming of the cross-cutting perspectives gender, climate and conflict across work and activities. From an organisational perspective, 2020 was however particularly marked by two important events: a new agreement with Swedwatch’s main donor, Sida, including a transition to core funding, and the decision to implement a new organisational structure. Examples of key outcomes to which Swedwatch’s work in 2020 contributed: Engagement with export credit agencies to phase out support to the coal sector Coal is the most polluting energy source in the world and emissions from coal-fired power plants the single largest contributor to climate change. Still, despite the world’s pledge in the Paris Agreement to avoid dangerous climate change, state-controlled banks and export credit agencies (ECAs) based in the EU have for decades provided export credits to the coal sector, contributing to upholding the coal industry in general and to locking countries into coal dependency for decades to come. In 2020, Swedwatch’s work on the issue contributed to important developments in policy changes of ECAs. Following extensive dialogue with Swedish ECAs and research on human rights impacts in South Africa’s coal district, Swedish ECAS significantly accelerated the pace of change and adopted new policies on export credits and loans concerning fossil fuels activities. Highlighting human rights and environmental impacts in the mining sector Although the widespread negative impacts of irresponsible mining practices in Myanmar’s conflict- ridden Kachin state have been well known for years, three world-leading international mining machinery companies including Volvo CE, were in 2018 unable to demonstrate that they had conducted human rights due diligence in relation to their sales of mining products in Myanmar. As a result of the dialogue with Swedwatch and the findings presented in its 2018 report, Volvo CE commissioned a consultant to conduct a human rights due diligence in relation to its sales of mining equipment in Myanmar. The company dialogue and subsequent result were presented in Swedwatch’s follow-up report Still overlooked, published in June 2020. Promoting business support for human rights and environmental defenders 3 Swedwatch significantly increased its work to promote the rights of HREDs, both through direct engagement with companies and by ensuring that defenders’ perspectives were presented in international fora. For instance, following Swedwatch’s mobilization of six Nordic food companies, charges were once again dropped in a new SLAPP-lawsuit against Ecuadorian defender Jorge Acosta, reporting on labour rights and environmental impacts in the banana sector. Swedwatch’s continuous work with the food companies in support of Acosta has served as a source of inspiration for other companies and is one of few cases of active company support of a threatened defender. Swedwatch also supported the Ecuadorian union ASTAC to reach out to purchasing companies with information on the impacts of Covid-19 on agricultural workers in the banana industry. Highlighting dangerous labour conditions for women and leading a successful EU project Swedwatch was the lead partner for the Make ICT Fair project, a three-year EU-wide campaign aiming to improve the lives of affected workers and communities in the information- and communication technology supply chains. Within the project, Swedwatch initiated a project focusing on how women are affected in the ICT supply chain. Through the collaboration with a local project partner in the Philippines, Swedwatch was able to investigate how hazardous chemicals used in the production of smartphones and computers affect the health of female factory workers. The report enabled Swedwatch to initiate dialogue with five of the world’s largest ICT brands; a dialogue that is set to continue in 2021. Swedwatch’s work also led to a new partnership in the Philippines along with plans to jointly develop educational material for Philippine factory workers in 2021. Addressing the role of companies in peacebuilding efforts More than a billion people are affected by violent conflict around the world but the vital role of business in fuelling conflict – or sustaining peace – is often overlooked in peacebuilding efforts. In recent years, Swedwatch has substantially worked to increase the recognition of business in peacebuilding in post-conflict settings. As part of this work, Swedwatch facilitated the participation of its West African project partners in a regional consultation of the UN Working Group on Business and Human rights in Cote d’Ivoire. The Working Group’s recommendations – to which Swedwatch’s project partners from Sierra Leona and Liberia had contributed with insights – were presented in a report to the UN General Assembly in October 2020. Facilitating capacity building and exchange for defenders and civil society actors Critical in expanding civic space and ensuring a rights-based, participatory and systems approach is the facilitation of capacity building and exchange for CSOs to conduct BHRE research and engage in dialogue with other stakeholders. In 2020, Swedwatch’s ambitions to increase the number of training sessions offered to civil society actors in the Global South was hampered by the pandemic but Swedwatch still manged to continue its existing collaboration with human rights organisations in East Africa and to offer online trainings. As a result of Swedwatch’s 2019 and 2020 trainings with organisations from five East African countries working with communities affected by mining and agribusiness, several participants expressed an increased interest in developing their own work within BHRE and some of them initiated concrete projects. The Kenyan organisation Haki Madini has for example used the skills acquired during Swedwatch’s training to conduct a study of the impacts related to the mining sector in Kenya during Covid-19. 4 1. About Swedwatch Swedwatch aims to empower rights holders and to promote responsible business practices, by highlighting and contributing to the address of adverse impacts of business operations on people and planet.