Due diligence guidance on stakeholder engagement in extractive industries

Companies can contribute to positive social and economic development when they involve stakeholders, such as local communities, in their planning and decision-making. This is particularly true in the extractive sector, which is associated with extensive social, economic and environmental impacts.

OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Meaningful Stakeholder Engagement in the Extractive Sector

The OECD has developed a guide for practitioners in the mining, oil and gas industries to address the challenges raised when engaging with stakeholders.

The guidance provides a practical framework for identifying and managing risks with regard to stakeholder engagement activities to ensure companies play a role in avoiding and addressing adverse impacts as defined in the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.

The guidance also includes an assessment framework for industry to evaluate their stakeholder engagement performance and targeted advice for specific stakeholder groups such as indigenous peoples, women, workers and artisanal and small-scale miners.

Main recommendations

Integrating stakeholder engagement into project planning and regular business operations through sharing of decision-making power with interested and affected parties;
Practising stakeholder engagement that is driven by stakeholders through ongoing consultation and follow-through;
Developing a stakeholder engagement strategy that prioritises engagement with the most severely affected rather than most influential stakeholders.

More information

Background

This guidance was developed with the support of a multi-stakeholder advisory group and was the subject of online public consultation.

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Summary