A/HRC/44/43 Basel Institute on Governance has noted that effective governance is needed during this public health crisis.41 19. The pandemic highlights the risks to people posed by corruption and businessrelated human rights abuses. The Working Group reminded stakeholders that the business sector continues to have human rights responsibilities in this crisis.42 The Guiding Principles require that transactions conducted between States and business enterprises are subject to human rights due diligence, such that the human rights impacts of any measures (including the potential for corruption) are assessed and mitigated to the greatest extent. Business enterprises must respect human rights by exercising due diligence to prevent harms to people and address identified adverse impacts. The pandemic makes apparent the link between such due diligence and protecting the right to life. D. Extractive sector 20. The extractive sector has been highlighted as an area in which significant corrupt activities take place, often regarding gaining access to profitable government concessions.43 OECD found that one fifth of transnational bribery cases concluded between 1999 and 2014 had occurred in the sector.44 In this sector, corruption and human rights abuses can stem from similar causes. The connection between corruption and human rights abuses has been demonstrated in specific contexts, 45 and corruption in the sector has been noted by the Human Rights Committee in concluding observations. 46 While some Governments have explored ways to incentivize human rights due diligence by extractive companies, including through regulations on mandatory due diligence and disclosure,47 there are recurrent issues concerning the lack of human rights impact assessments in processes for granting a licence or concession, or mining, oil or gas rights. The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, a multi-stakeholder framework to combat corruption in the extractive sector, has been endorsed at least 3 times by the Group of 20 and 10 times by the Group of 7/Group of 8, and the General Assembly has taken note of the Initiative, demonstrating consensus about a global problem needing a solution.48 21. Despite some good practices regarding supply chains49 and human rights due diligence,50 the human rights impacts of corruption in the extractive sector remain significant. In indigenous communities, for example, extensive mining and oil and gas extraction generates significant adverse human rights impacts affecting the rights to health and to an environment adequate for health and well-being.51 Granting concessions without proper environmental or social risk assessments, for example, leads to a host of human rights abuses that have an impact on the local population. Grievances concern the lack of meaningful consultations with local communities, in particular indigenous peoples, and non-compliance with the requirement of free, prior, informed consent in the context of business activities on their lands, set out in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 See https://ti-health.org/content/coronavirus-covid19-corruption-health-systems/. See www.baselgovernance.org/blog/rethinking-governance-times-covid-19-pandemic. See www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=25746&LangID=E. See www.oecd.org/dev/Corruption-in-the-extractive-value-chain.pdf. See www.oecd.org/corruption/oecd-foreign-bribery-report-9789264226616-en.htm. See, for example, https://reliefweb.int/report/democratic-republic-congo/powering-down-corruptiontackling-transparency-and-human-rights; www.globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/oil-gas-andmining/shell-knew/; and www.globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/oil-gas-and-mining/take-the-future/. See, for example, CCPR/C/NGA/CO/2, paras. 12–13; CCPR/C/GNQ/CO/1, paras. 18–19; and CCPR/C/NER/CO/2, paras. 10–11. See, for example, the Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act adopted in Canada. See www.cmi.no/publications/6300-has-the-eiti-been-successful. See, for example, http://mneguidelines.oecd.org/Brochure_OECD-Responsible-Mineral-SupplyChains.pdf. See, for example, www.icmm.com/mining-principles. See www.un.org/press/en/2017/hr5357.doc.htm; https://globalexchange.org/2016/06/02/thedevastating-effects-of-extractive-activities-on-perus-indigenous-peoples/; and www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/STUD/2014/534980/EXPO_STU(2014)534980_EN.pdf. 7