Gender Ministry, FIDA Root for Respect of Human Rights at Work Places

The Ministry of Gender and Social Development in partnership with FIDA Uganda, have intensified campaigns to promote respect of Human Rights at Work places.

This was revealed at an engagement with stakeholders in private and public sector, to check, and assess on how well they are meeting the standards that have been set for the national action plan on business and human rights.

Speaking at the engagement, Elizabeth Kemigisha, the Advocacy manager at FIDA Uganda, said Uganda is one of the first few countries to have this policy in place.

She said there are a number of issues that have brought a lot of economic development, but also among those are some of the human rights violations that have been experienced at work places.

“We have seen displacement we have seen exploitation of labor, as in sexual harassment, we have seen issues of evictions, forced evictions, untimely evictions of many communities. And for us, our concern as FIDA, are some of the vulnerable groups, including the women and children who continue to be the biggest sufferers of this problem.” kemigisha noted.

She said they have intensified engaging actors to see if some of the policies that speak to human rights in the work that they do.

Kemigisa added that that there are certain standards that have been set by the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, where the private sector plays a key role in seeing businesses have policies in place but even outside that, their practices are cognizant of the fact that business cannot continue without human rights.

“So today we are saying that businesses can continue to operate while still respecting human rights. That means still paying people a fair wage.” She noted.

Bernard mujuni the commissioner equity and rights at the Ministry of Gender noted that the engagement will help set the minimum starndads which are key minimum principals for the private sector in Business in terms of observing human rights.

Mujuni said a number of businesses are taking place but there’s need to sensitize them on respect on human rights in Business.

He said there’s need to respect human rights more so on local government forums. He further to the lack of human rights with some business facing backlash from communities.

Mujuni further revealed that the Ministry is planning to give certificate of award for the best cooperate social responsibility in terms of gender and equity and equality compliance will help track businesses and also see how Businesses have impacted positively to communities.