DAKAR, Senegal — United Nations independent expert, Professor Damilola Sunday Olawuyi (SAN), has issued a call for bold, innovative, and homegrown reforms to accelerate trade and investment across Africa without compromising human rights.
Professor Olawuyi, who serves as the UNESCO Chair on Environmental Law and Sustainable Development at Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar, delivered this recommendation during a high-level plenary address at the 5th Africa Forum on Business and Human Rights in Dakar.
The Forum, first held in Accra, Ghana, in 2022, has become the leading platform in Africa for governments, businesses, civil society, and international organisations to advance responsible investment.
This year’s event, themed ‘Realising the Right to a Clean, Healthy, and Sustainable Environment through Responsible Business Conduct,’ brought together nearly 1,000 participants, including high-level speakers such as Senegal’s Minister for Justice, Moussa Sarr, and representatives from the OHCHR, UNDP, UNICEF, and the African Union.
Marking the 15th anniversary of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), Olawuyi emphasised the need for win-win solutions that sustain economic growth while protecting people and the planet.
While acknowledging foreign investment as crucial for economic growth and employment, Olawuyi cautioned against ignoring the long-term, often irreversible impacts of business operations on workers, communities, and Indigenous peoples.
He specifically cited the rapid expansion of data centres and the digital economy as creating new risks for water, energy, and the environment.
“A rights-based approach to trade, investment and economic development can ensure that projects or infrastructure that may adversely impact societal well-being are not approved to proceed, irrespective of their economic value,” Olawuyi stated.
He argued that respecting human rights is not a barrier to business but a benefit. “A win for human rights is a win for businesses, especially in terms of mitigating reputational and regulatory risks.
“On the other hand, a win for businesses in terms of unlocking new clean technologies is a win for human rights,” he said.
Olawuyi urged states and businesses to provide more financial and technical support to clean energy innovators, national human rights institutions, and civil society organisations.
He also stressed the importance of human rights education in unlocking youth-led entrepreneurship.
“We cannot import our way to a secure, sustainable and rights-based future, so we must innovate locally,” he concluded, challenging all stakeholders to align their words with actions by fully implementing the UNGPs.
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