The EDF group is committed to protecting the rights of the local communities affected by its operations and arranging, systematically and worldwide, transparent, debated discussions and consultations for each new project.
The Group recognises the role of human rights and environmental defenders from all walks of life, both among its suppliers and in civil society. It is committed to protecting the exercise of their rights and ensures that it identifies the risks to
human rights and environmental activists caused by its business operations and allows them to speak freely about its operations.
The EDF group identifies, for each project, the potential impact on the health, living conditions and environment of local communities, with reference to the performance standards of the International Finance Corporation (World Bank Group) and proposes suitable measures.
| Indigenous People |
EDF is committed to respecting the specific characteristics and rights of indigenous peoples as defined in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and ILO Convention 169, which provides, in particular, that “indigenous peoples shall not be forcibly removed from their lands or territories. No relocation shall take place without the free, prior and informed consent of the indigenous peoples concerned and after agreement on just and fair compensation”. EDF is aware of the unique issues facing indigenous peoples and is committed to following the best international standards in this area and, more specifically, the UNDRIP (United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples), ILO Convention 169 and World Bank standards. In particular, EDF recognises the criteria for characterising indigenous peoples included in these standards, including historical and geographic “pre-existence”, “cultural distinctiveness”, “self-identification”, and “non-dominance”. EDF respects the individual and collective rights of indigenous peoples and communities, including their right to self-determination, their right to land, territories and resources, and their right to FPIC (Free Prior and Informed Consent) in its projects and activities, as defined by ILO Convention 169. |
|---|
Whenever its operations threaten or affect the livelihood of a community, the Group implements compensation and/or restoration measures for their livelihood matching or exceeding the level prior to its operations.
The EDF group is committed to respecting and protecting or safeguarding, in agreement with the populations concerned, any expressions of their culture, religion or heritage present on the land used for its operations.
In terms of the use of security forces, the Group is committed to protecting the safety of its employees and sites in strict compliance with human rights, including those of local communities, and only authorises the use of force for preventive or defensive purposes in a manner proportionate to the nature and severity of the threat.
Human rights commitments are implemented as part of the Group’s CSR commitments and requirements (1), based on the principles of action that apply to all Group operations, such as:
| Management of E&S impacts |
The initial and ongoing evaluation and the management of environmental and societal impacts and risks, including those caused by operations under its business relationships. |
|---|---|
| Dialogue and consultation |
The organisation, throughout the world, of transparent, debated discussions and consultations for each new. |
| Implementation and monitoring |
The implementation and monitoring of these commitments and requirements is ensured under the Group’s existing internal policies or agreements, in particular the sustainable development policy, the ethics and compliance policy, the purchasing policy, the health and safety policy, the global CSR agreement, the Ethics Charter and the roll-out of the vigilance plan. |
| Collecting and processing reports |
Systems for collecting and processing reports of wrongdoing, that are accessible and notified to anyone who could be impacted by the Company’s operations, guaranteeing the confidentiality of the reports and protecting internal whistleblowers (employees and external staff), have also been set up. |
Depending on the context of the project, a Human Rights Impact Assessment (HRIA (2)) is conducted. It is based on the principles defined by the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, as developed for example by the Danish Institute on Human Rights. These studies place the identification of impacted human rights at the centre of the analysis. They include an assessment of the state of human rights in the country as well as in the project area, a mapping of human rights-oriented stakeholders (listing “rights-holders” and “duty bearers”), an analysis of the project’s impacts on these rights, and the development of mitigation measures. This type of study identifies the activities at risk according to their importance and sensitivity. These studies are generally entrusted to national or international consultants specialising in the topic, and managed by EDF’s internal Human Rights contacts. The conclusions of these studies are intended to be integrated into all development, construction, operation and end-of-life activities of the project, via an ad hoc management system (internal Human Rights policy, Human Rights contact and correspondents, contractual tools, audits and performance monitoring, reporting, etc.). They concern both affected communities and workers, the use of security forces, the whistleblowing system and the protection of whistleblowers, etc.
The consideration of human rights, through the Group’s commitments framework, is integrated into each analysis of projects presented to the Group Executive Committee’s Commitments Committee (CECEG), as well as to the Validation Committee for the Group’s international development projects (CBDI). This takes the form of identifying the human rights risks associated with the projects, both for the activities developed and for the supplier relationships envisaged in the framework of the project. This identification will be facilitated by the construction of a grid, to be made available in 2021, which will allow for an analysis of projects that are consistent with the Group’s raison d’être, CSR commitments, and guidelines, as well as with international standards. This grid takes into account environmental, health and safety, human rights, and ethical dimensions. All of the Group’s human rights commitments and requirements are addressed, such as compliance with the ILO’s fundamental conventions (on child labour, forced labour, freedom of association, discrimination), the rights of local communities, and health and safety conditions for the populations in question.
(1) EDF and the companies it controls. Control is established, in particular, if EDF holds, directly or indirectly, a majority of the share capital or the voting rights within the governing bodies of the relevant companies. Excluding RTE and Enedis which are independently managed subsidiaries within the meaning of the provisions of the Energy Code.
(2) Human Rights Impacts Assessment and Management.
