A/HRC/41/43 30. Targets 5.a to 5.c encourage the use of legislation, policies, reforms and technologies to empower women and girls, which in turn helps to achieve substantive gender equality. A critical role for businesses is envisioned in the 2030 Agenda.36 However, if States and businesses adopt a gender-neutral approach in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals or consider gender an issue relevant only under Goal 5, they might end up leaving behind half of the world’s population. A gender perspective should, therefore, be integrated in realizing all the goals and targets under the 2030 Agenda. For example, measures aimed at ending poverty and hunger (Goal 1), promoting decent work for all (Goal 8), reducing inequality within and among countries (Goal 10), combating climate change (Goal 13), providing access to justice (Goal 16) and strengthening public-private partnerships (Goal 17) should be gender-responsive. OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct 31. The OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct provides enterprises with practical guidance in implementing the due-diligence components of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. The Guidance represents an important step, as it contains recommendations urging businesses to apply a gender perspective to risk-based due diligence.37 OECD recommends that, in assessing adverse impacts, businesses pay special attention “to different risks that may be faced by women and men”.38 Businesses should also “be aware of gender issues and women’s human rights in situations where women may be disproportionately impacted”.39 OECD further recommends “applying a gender perspective to due diligence when appropriate”.40 To avoid any doubt, it should be stressed that a gender perspective is always appropriate for all States and businesses in all situations. 32. OECD suggests several gender-sensitive steps that businesses should take, such as collecting and assessing sex-disaggregated data, developing and evaluating gender-sensitive and gender-responsive policies, identifying overlapping or accumulated vulnerabilities, and assessing whether grievance mechanisms are gender-sensitive.41 It also reminds businesses that stakeholders such as women “may need additional attention in the context of stakeholder engagement activities”.42 Although there is no specific reference to gender in the context of the national contact points, the relevance of gender to providing remedies was expressly acknowledged during a workshop on gender convened by the Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct. 43 More such awareness-raising and capacity-building workshops could assist in mainstreaming a gender perspective in implementing all components of the OECD Guidelines. International Labour Organization standards 33. Over the years, the International Labour Organization has developed several gender equality standards: (a) The principle of equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value (Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100)); (b) The prohibition of discrimination on the basis of, among others, sex (Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111)); 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 8 Paras. 28, 39, 41, 52, 60, 62 and 67, and Goal 17. See also sector-specific due-diligence guidance, available at http://mneguidelines.oecd.org/ duediligence/. OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct, p. 27. Ibid., p. 41. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid., p. 51. OECD, “Workshop on responsible business conduct and gender: Chair’s summary”, 20 March 2019, pp. 5–6.