TOWARDS BINDING REGULATION OF TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATIONS

Politicians have not taken the necessary measures to regulate the negative impacts of rapid economic globalisation, writes Gunhild Orstavik, senior adviser at the Norwegian Forum for Environment and Development (ForUM). In this article, the author writes that there are no international agreements that effectively regulate the activities of corporations today, although the United Nations is working to establish such regulations. In the meantime, the UN encourages states to draw up national guidelines. ForUM\'s goal is the establishment of legally-binding international guidelines with built-in mechanisms for sanctions. This would increase the pressure on the worst offenders that have not been influenced by the UN Global Compact, OECD guidelines, or other voluntary initiatives to change their behaviour, and which for various reasons have not been targeted by criminal laws. Further work on this in the UN should be given high priority, and at the same time states should respond to the challenge from the UN to work out national guidelines. The more countries that have national guidelines, the greater will be the impact on global environmental and development problems.