abusesaffiliationarrow-downarrow-leftarrow-rightarrow-upattack-typeburgerchevron-downchevron-leftchevron-rightchevron-upClock iconclosedeletedevelopment-povertydiscriminationdollardownloademailenvironmentexternal-linkfacebookfiltergenderglobegroupshealthC4067174-3DD9-4B9E-AD64-284FDAAE6338@1xinformation-outlineinformationinstagraminvestment-trade-globalisationissueslabourlanguagesShapeCombined Shapeline, chart, up, arrow, graphLinkedInlocationmap-pinminusnewsorganisationotheroverviewpluspreviewArtboard 185profilerefreshIconnewssearchsecurityPathStock downStock steadyStock uptagticktooltiptwitteruniversalityweb

Diese Seite ist nicht auf Deutsch verfügbar und wird angezeigt auf English

Der Inhalt ist auch in den folgenden Sprachen verfügbar: English, français, 日本語

Briefing

25 Mär 2024

Big tech in Africa: Insights for investors

Shutterstock

As outlined in the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, investors should be using their leverage to improve company conduct and promote human rights due diligence processes to identify, prevent and mitigate salient human rights risks from materialising. The tech sector is no exception. Several key cases, including those outlined below, have the potential to change how “rights” are discussed within corporate decision-making spaces. Investor action is needed to protect people and portfolios from undue risk.

This briefing highlights the salient human rights risks relating to the tech sector in Africa. These include labour rights abuse, data privacy and hyper surveillance, discrimination, and the impacts of internet shutdowns and censorship. It links these human rights issues to material risks including legal, financial and reputations risks. It demonstrates that the assumption that investors may not expect there to be serious legal, operational and reputational risks outside of the United States or the European Union due to the supposedly little progress on litigation and corporate accountability in other jurisdictions is becoming outdated. This is evidenced by an increasing number of lawsuits, operational disruptions and moral quandaries executives are facing in relation to alleged human rights abuses by technology companies doing business in Africa. 

Further reading

Silicon Shadows: Venture capital, human rights, and the lack of due diligence

To assess the extent to which leading VC firms conduct human rights due diligence on their investments in companies developing Generative AI, Amnesty International USA and the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre surveyed the 10 largest venture capital funds that invested in Generative AI companies, and the two largest start-up accelerators most actively investing in Generative AI.

Dismantling the facade: A global south perspective on the state of engagement with tech companies

Civil society organisations and individuals calling for transparency and accountability in the tech sector face unique challenges, particularly in the Global South. We spoke to groups pushing for change in this opaque sector about the challenges, tools and strategies in their work.

Financing mining for transition minerals in South Africa: Are banks doing enough on human rights?

As the race to reach net-zero intensifies, financing is pouring into South Africa's mining industry. Our analysis of the human rights commitments and actions of 15 banks revealed widespread failure to take adequate measures to avoid contributing to abuses in this particularly risky sector.

Informationen zum Datenschutz

Diese Website verwendet Cookies und andere Web-Speichertechnologien. Sie können Ihre Datenschutzeinstellungen unten festlegen. Die Änderungen werden sofort wirksam.

Weitere Informationen über unsere Nutzung von Webspeicherung finden Sie in unserer Richtlinie zur Datennutzung und Cookies

Strictly necessary storage

ON
OFF

Necessary storage enables core site functionality. This site cannot function without it, so it can only be disabled by changing settings in your browser.

Analytics-Cookie

ON
OFF

When you access our website we use Google Analytics to collect information on your visit. Accepting this cookie will allow us to understand more details about your journey, and improve how we surface information. All analytics information is anonymous and we do not use it to identify you. Google provides a Google Analytics opt-out add on for all popular browsers.

Promotional cookies

ON
OFF

We share news and updates on business and human rights through third party platforms, including social media and search engines. These cookies help us to understand the performance of these promotions.

Ihre Privatsphäre-Einstellungen für diese Website

Diese Website verwendet Cookies und andere Web-Speichertechnologien, um Ihre Erfahrung über die notwendigen Kernfunktionen hinaus zu verbessern.