Children's rights integrated in business activities discussed

Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Trong Dam has called for businesses’ more involvement in activities supporting the implementation of children’s rights.

He made the statement at a workshop on children’s rights and business principles held in Ho Chi Minh City on December 9 by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Vietnam.

Illustration photo. Photo: Huu Chi

Developed by UNICEF and the UN Global Compact and Save the Children, the “Children’s Rights and Business Principles” is a set of ten principles guiding businesses to provide support for the implementation of children’s rights through their operations.

The principles are built on existing standards, initiatives and best practices related to businesses and children, and seek to fill gaps to present a coherent vision for businesses to maximise the positive impacts and minimise negative impacts on children.

According to Lara Vu from UNICEF Vietnam, the set of principles defines a series of actions that enterprises should take to prevent activities harmful to children.

Irik Nyman, UNICEF regional advisor, highlighted that the implementation of business principles ensuring children’s rights will bring benefits to children and society as well as long-term benefits to enterprises.

He suggested firms be given training on children-related issues in order to build action plans with a view to providing the best benefits for children.

At the event, participants discussed measures to integrate the principles into businesses’ operations.

Representatives from the city’s associations and businesses signed a commitment on the implementation of the “Children’s Rights and Business Principles”.

(Source: VNA)