San Donato Milanese (Milan), 3 August 2022 – Eni publishes Eni for Human Rights 2021, the annual report that accounts the company’s approach to the matter, taking stock of the relevant outcomes, challenges and opportunities in terms of respect for human rights.
“We are living in a time of disruption that calls us to act with even more responsibility to affirm our values: peace, respect for human rights and sense of community. The war is destroying human lives and livelihoods and deteriorating international relations, drawing us to join forces to seek our common good. Our goal stands clear in this context: we want to keep a sharp focus on a just transition that will be people-centred. We will achieve this goal only if we share its costs fairly, without burdening workers and vulnerable communities, while accelerating decarbonisation to achieve the Paris Agreements’ objectives”, said Claudio Descalzi, Eni’s Chief Executive Officer.
Among the key outcomes of 2021 outlined in the report, Eni carried out four specific human rights studies in relation to the industrial projects considered more at risk in Angola, Albania, Oman and United Arab Emirates, which led to the creation of concrete Human Rights Action Plans, tailored on the specificities of each country.
The company also strengthened its commitment on women rights, signing the United Nations Women Empowerment Principles. In addition, Eni issued a Zero Tolerance Policy that prohibits all forms of violence and harassment in the workplace, moving in advance to the issuance of national implementing decrees related to the Italian ratification process of the International Labor Organization Convention No. 190 on the subject.
The work done in the past years, and the results achieved in 2021, allow Eni to deal with the most innovative projects with a solid approach and structured processes on human rights. For example, in a just transition perspective, in Kenya and Congo the company is carrying out an integrated analysis on socio-economic and human rights impact of its initiatives to integrate the countries into the biofuel value chain on the local community. Eni is working with farmers to recover marginal lands not in competition with the food chain, for example in degraded areas subject to erosion, drought and pollution, by cultivating crops for energy use, providing incomes and market access to thousands of farmers in rural areas. The studies will evaluate over time several indicators, such as the improvement of the revenues that the system introduces on the lives of farmers, as well as a proper management of lands.
