Strengthening accountability through human rights in Kenya

The Danish Institute for Human Rights has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights as a framework for their collaboration in the areas of responsible business and human rights and the SDGs.

The Memorandum of Understanding will set the framework for collaboration between these two national human rights institutions for the next two years.
The two institutions will work together a human rights-based approach to the implementation and monitoring of the Sustainable Development Goals, and on strengthening the implementation of standards on responsible business in Kenya. Lessons from this work will also be used to support other national human Rights institutions to learn from the Kenyan experience.

“The signing of this Memorandum of Understanding provides a unique opportunity for both these National Human Rights Institutions to generate important lessons for a human rights based approach to the SDGs. Through working together, we can use human rights as a key means of securing accountability in the implementation and follow-up of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, said Eva Grambye, Deputy Executive Director of the Danish Institute for Human Rights.

The Memorandum of Understanding builds on and consolidates a long-term collaboration between the two institutions who have been working together on responsible business and human rights for a number of years. Kenya is the first country in the African region to develop a National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, which is expected to be adopted in 2019.

The Institute has been supporting the institution throughout the process, as well as providing critical capacity building support to Kenya National Commission on Human Rights to work on a human rights-based approach to the SDGs in Kenya.