Sweden and Corporate Social Responsibility



Sweden and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

The Swedish CSR policy is based on international conventions and policies regarding human rights, core labour standards, environment and corruption that establish a global level for human decency in business. The issue of Corporate Social Responsibility has an important function, as it links:

• An active trade policy for greater openness and freer trade, and

• A foreign policy that strongly emphasises the importance of human rights and sustainable development.

Work related to CSR is carried out on different levels and in various settings.

1. The Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility

The Swedish Government has invited the corporate community to take part in an initiative called the Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility. The Initiative was launched by the Prime Minister on 7 March 2002 and aims at encouraging Swedish companies to be advocates of human rights, anti-corruption and a decent and sound environment, all over the world.

The Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility has three objectives:

• To uphold human rights and the principles of sustainable development

• To strengthen the competitiveness of Swedish companies

• To increase knowledge of the multilateral regulatory framework.

The basis for the initiative is provided by the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the principles set forth in the UN’s Global Compact.

The Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility is an initiative whose purpose is to provide an informative setting for debate, highlight good examples and help stakeholders learn from each other. The initiative works on three levels: (1) Internal efforts at the Government Offices to facilitate coordination on a range of activities in the area of CSR; (2) International activities contributing to policy development, e.g. the conference on Development Cooperation and Corporate Social Responsibility held in Stockholm in March 2004; (3) External activities for interested parties. External activities include:

• Monthly seminars for in-depth discussions and information on how the guidelines and principles can be put into practice

• Specialised workshops on specific issues, e.g. core labour standards

• Meetings between different interest groups for exchanges of experience

• Studies on specific issues relating to CSR

• General Information and Ssupport in CSR issues from the Government Offices and the Swedish missions abroad

• A forum for presenting viewpoints on how international and national policy should develop.

Companies can join the Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility, by expressing a commitment, in writing, to support and strive to fulfil the OECD Guidelines and the ten principles of the Global Compact. The companies are also expected to provide an example of their work on these issues. Their cooperation is displayed by posting the company’s name and a description of its work on the Government website. As of August 2004, the following fifteen companies have joined the Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility: ICA, Löfbergs Lila, the Body Shop, Folksam, H&M, OMHEX AB, ITT Flygt, Vattenfall, KPA, SWECO, Banco, V&S Group, Lernia, Apoteket and Akademiska hus.

More information is available at ud.se/ga

2. The National Contact Point for the OECD Guidelines

Since 1979, Sweden has carried on a continuous dialogue with the social partners concerning Corporate Social Responsibility, as part of efforts associated with the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. The Swedish National Contact Point (NCP) is a tripartite body with representatives from the Swedish Government, business organisations and trade unions. The NCP is headed by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. It provides valuable input for the Swedish position to the Committee on International Investment and Multinational Enterprises (CIME) and the cooperation has proved fundamental for the promotion of the OECD Guidelines. Members of the NCP regularly attend seminars and conferences where they inform about and discuss the Guidelines and the work of the NCP with NGOs and other interested parties.

The Government has widely distributed a handbook on the Guidelines to members of the business community, Swedish embassies, etc. The handbook is also posted on the Ministry for Foreign Affairs website.

3. Public policy in support of CSR

A part from the Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility the Swedish government has initiated a number of initiatives to incorporate CSR in public policy.

State-owned companies are a specific target group in promoting Corporate Social Responsibility. The Swedish Government has an explicit policy that it should use its role as an owner to promote sound business behaviour within state-owned companies, and in 2004 33 state-owned companies were required to report on their work towards implementing the principles underpinning the Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility. The responses clearly showed that all companies had come into contact and worked with CSR. The differences lay in where they began and the approaches they took.

Public procurement also serves as an instrument for promoting CSR. In this context, the Government is currently assessing the possibilities of taking social and environmental concerns into account in public procurement. To this end, in July 2004 the Government distributed a questionnaire to public authorities and agencies asking how they incorporate CSR in their procurement processes. Since 1997, government authorities and agencies have been required to mainstream environmental management systems and report annually on their progress.

Since 1999, companies above a certain minimum size have been required to include information on their environmental impact (e.g. emissions to air and water, use of manufactured chemicals) in their annual reports, a provision that applies to more than 20 000 sites.

Within the framework of an Integrated Product Policy, market stakeholders are encouraged to reduce the environmental impact of products over their entire lifecycle. A wide range of tools and instruments is in use, e.g. environmental management systems, eco-labelling and environmental product declarations, and further coordination and development are in progress.

Sweden also believes that export credits are an important instrument in promoting Corporate Social Responsibility. Consequently, the Swedish Export Credits Guarantee Board provides all its customers with information on the Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility, existing regulations on bribery and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.

Under the Public Pension Funds Act (2000:192), the National Pension Funds are required to draw up an annual business plan, which must include guidelines for investment activities. The business plan must describe how environmental and ethical considerations are taken into account in investment activities, without detracting from the fundamental objectives of fund management. The annual report should include an account of the influence that such considerations have had on the management of funds.

On a national level, new legislation entered into force on 1 July 2003, requiring all enterprises to include information on the number of absences due to illness in their annual reports.

4. Government agencies/authorities and CSR

The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) supports a range of activities aimed at encouraging the implementation and development of CSR. In January 2004, Sida and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs jointly hosted a two-day international meeting on how donor agencies can promote responsible business practices and assist in their implementation.

The Swedish Business Development Agency (NUTEK) is supporting five network projects, involving 50 SMEs, between 2002 and 2004. These projects are promoting CSR in SMEs through the creation of business development tools, case studies and regional incubators. NUTEK has also been an active part in the DG Enterprise project “Responsible Entrepreneurship”, in which four Swedish case studies on CSR in SMEs were presented.

The Swedish Consumer Agency (SCA) promotes awareness of CSR among consumers and NGOs. SCA supports round-table dialogue among stakeholders, to which representatives of the producing countries are also invited. SCA has produced training material, for example “Consume Less”, and has co-published a book with Sida entitled “Ethics and Trade”, addressed to all consumers. SCA has recently presented a survey, “Consumption and Ethics”, about sustainable consumption in a global perspective. The report also includes proposals for future government consumer policy in this field.

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