A/HRC/41/43/Add.1 I. Introduction 1. Further to Human Rights Council resolutions 17/4, 26/22 and 35/7, the Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, represented by two of its members, Surya Deva and Dante Pesce, visited Thailand from 26 March to 4 April 2018, at the invitation of the Government. During the visit, the representatives of the Working Group aimed to assess the efforts made by the Government and business enterprises to prevent, mitigate and address the adverse impact of business-related activities on human rights, in line with the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: Implementing the United Nations “Protect, Respect and Remedy” Framework. 2. The experts met with the Minister for Foreign Affairs and officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment, the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Energy, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Industry, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Labour, the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry for Social Development and Human Security, the Ministry of the Interior, the National Council for Peace and Order, the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board, the Royal Thai Police, the Office of the National Anti-Corruption Commission, the Office of the Public Sector AntiCorruption Commission, the Revenue Department, the State Enterprise Policy Office, the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, the Office for the Eastern Economic Corridor, the Administrative Court, the Office of the Attorney General, the Courts of Justice, the Office of the Council of State, the National Reform Committee on Natural Resources and the Environment and the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs of the National Legislative Assembly. The experts also met with the Governors of Songkhla and Khon Kaen, and the Vice Governor of Chiang Mai, as well as authorities from provincial offices and local government. They also met with key officials from the Command Centre for Combating Illegal Fishing, the Fisheries Department and the Marine Department in Samut Sakhon. 3. Meetings were held with representatives of indigenous peoples (ethnic minority communities) and with more than 250 representatives of civil society organizations, human rights defenders, affected individuals, migrant workers and academia. The experts also met with representatives of the United Nations country team, the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand, the Stock Exchange of Thailand, the Chamber of Commerce, the Board of Trade, the Federation of Thai Industries, the Thai Bankers’ Association, business associations in the tourism and fishery sectors, members of the United Nations Global Compact Network Thailand and individual business enterprises that made themselves available to share their experiences with the Working Group. 4. The Working Group thanks the Government for its support and assistance, and its willingness to engage in a frank discussion on the challenges faced and lessons learned in promoting respect for human rights in the business community. It also thanks the organizations, businesses, communities and individuals with whom it met for their openness and willingness to engage in a constructive and solution-oriented dialogue. II. General context 5. The main industries in Thailand include agriculture (rice farming being a significant area), farm product processing, textiles, automotive parts, services and tourism. At the time of drafting, Thailand was ranked 87 on the United Nations Development Programme Human Development Index and the second-largest economy in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). According to the Stock Exchange of Thailand, outward foreign direct investment by Thai listed firms has continuously increased: in 2016 they invested B180 billion, which was an increase from the B75 billion in 2015, the majority of 4