Mozambique is endowed with significant natural resources and has attracted increasing investment from the mining and extractive sectors in recent years. But the country also faces significant unrest, violence and criminality – most notably due to an insurgency in Cabo Delgado, its northernmost province. Insufficient government capacity and weak state security forces mean that the security of operations in the extractive sector can only be maintained effectively if there is a high degree of collaboration between companies and private as well as state security actors, and if positive relationships are built with communities affected by mining and extractive industries. To be sustainable, respect for human rights must be built into exploration and operations right from the outset. How to ensure the security of operators while protecting and promoting human rights is therefore a key concern of many companies and investors in Mozambique.
These issues are not new. Businesses used state and private security providers to guard their supply chains during Mozambique’s civil war (1977–92), and in the last 20 years the growth of mining, especially for coal and rubies, has been accompanied by a renewed focus on the role of the private sector in human rights. In 2013, Mozambique became the first African country to begin work on a National Action Plan (NAP) on Business and Human Rights as a joint initiative between the government and civil society organizations (CSOs). Despite these positive steps, Mozambique’s government and private sector partners still face widespread community anger – as well as severe criticism from human rights organizations – over abuses committed both in counter-insurgency operations and the conduct of extractive industries. This constrains further investment, slows growth and holds back much-needed development. More needs to be done.
It is in this context that the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights (VPs) can offer a roadmap to sustainable progress. Established in 2002, the VPs are a set of standards that provide guidance to companies and governments in managing their security operations in a manner that reduces the risk of human rights abuses. The VPs were the result of a dialogue between governments, companies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that addressed security-related human rights abuses and violations. This three-pillar approach – governments, businesses and NGOs – remains critical in providing structures for support and learning, as well as for accountability and monitoring.
Mozambique has a further opportunity to show leadership in Africa by signing up to the VPs. Implementing these, and engaging with the Voluntary Principles Initiative (VPI) – a membership-based organization which brings together states, NGOs and businesses to promote the implementation of the VPs – can foster socio-economic and political benefits. Committing to the provision of security that protects and promotes human rights can be an important way to build confidence among international investors and, ultimately, to help resource-endowed countries unlock the broader economic potential of existing and new production. Such benefits require all parties to demonstrate a mutual commitment to implementation. In complex operating environments, the VPs provide an important framework for due diligence and guidance on identifying and mitigating human rights risks.
The VPs are a set of standards that provide guidance to companies and governments in managing their security operations in a manner that reduces the risk of human rights abuses.
The sustained implementation of the VPs and membership of the VPI are important statements of commitment to human rights that will support Mozambique’s efforts towards wider national and international commercial and diplomatic objectives, including its ambition to hold a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
Among the major companies present in Mozambique, ExxonMobil, Galp, TotalEnergies, Shell, BP, Rio Tinto and Vale are already fully signed up to the VPI. Gemfields and Eni are engaged corporate members and are likely to be full members in the near future. Important partners of Mozambique with diplomatic missions in the capital, Maputo, are also VPI members and advocates. These include Argentina, Canada, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, the UK and the US.
The Mozambican government first considered signing up to the VPI in 2015. The usefulness of the VPs is gradually becoming better understood by key government stakeholders in Mozambique, driven in part by the belief of the National Human Rights Commission that both public institutions and the Mozambican people need to develop a deeper understanding of the interplay of issues around business and human rights. In 2021 the VPs are once again on the national agenda, with signals emerging from within the government that it is inclined to sign up.
The purpose of this research paper is to highlight to government actors and extractive companies the utility of the VPs in helping to promote human rights best practice in violently contested situations. It is intended as a resource for the government of Mozambique, the private sector and civil society on the utility of the VPs, and it identifies regional and international partners as well as support networks that can be drawn upon. As Mozambique is preparing to undertake the process of becoming engaged in the VPI, with an ambition to achieve full government membership, there are several international case studies that illustrate best practice, as well as potential pitfalls that should be avoided. This paper includes short case studies on Ghana, Colombia and Indonesia which outline the respective experiences of these countries and the companies operating in them. It also highlights areas where the requisite mechanisms and processes already exist in Mozambique and refers to cases of learning in the country’s recent history.
A copy of the VPs is included below as Annex 1.
