Colombia Mining and Energy Committee

The Colombia Mining and Energy Committee (CME)  is a permanent, independent platform focused on dialogue and collaborative cooperation among various stakeholders from the Colombian government; civil society; and companies that are interested in the protection, promotion and respect of security-related human rights. The purpose of this multi-stakeholder initiative, which has been present in Colombia since 2003, is to improve the business operational environment through impacts on public policy, knowledge generation, better tools and practices, and promotion of human rights due diligence.

Currently, the CME has 28 members among companies in the oil, mining and energy sectors; national government entities; civil society organizations; academia; business associations; and diplomatic missions. The CME obtains funding through annual fee payments made by company members, as well as grants provided by governments and other international organizations.

Through its work strengthening security practices and respect for human rights, the CME has made significant contributions towards Colombia's implementation of theVoluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, as well as the UN GuidingPrinciples on Business and Human Rights. The CME works with companies, civil society, and government actors to ensure that the export of mining and energy products is aligned with human rights.

In its years of operation, the CME has undertaken the following activities:

• Publishing ten recommendation documents for risk management in the mining and energy operations sector in Colombia.
• Maintaining a proactive dialogue with the Colombian public forces to ensure that security management in extractive areas is done in compliance with human rights standards.
• Improving the interaction mechanisms between companies and the public forces in order to ensure transparency and adequate management of the risks of human rights violations.
• Establishing itself as a pioneer initiative in Colombia, acknowledged and consulted in the materialisation of public policies, with a direct impact on the mining and energy sector.
• Designing, in collaboration with CREER and the Ministry of National Defence, a protocol for the identification and management of security-related human rights risks.
• Applying the security and human rights incident analysis tool, allowing the identification of the most repeated incidents in the operating environments of CME companies.
• Analysing the challenges and lessons learned through the implementation of the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights and due diligence during the Covid-19 pandemic in Colombia.

Key factors that have made the CME successful:

1. The willingness of the Colombian government to acknowledge serious concerns regarding human rights and violations of international humanitarian law in the country.
2. A commitment from companies and the Colombian government to work collaboratively to protect and respect human rights by:
   1. Raising awareness of the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
   2. Implementing the CME’s recommendations.
   3. Identifying best practices on security-related human rights issues. A reasonable level of trust between members.
   1. Raising awareness of the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
   2. Implementing the CME’s recommendations.
   3. Identifying best practices on security-related human rights issues. A reasonable level of trust between members.
3. A commitment to continuous improvement, as opposed to perfection. To this end, the CME has developed a verification mechanism that is applied annually by CME members.
4. Knowledge generation from the articulation of experiences, perspectives and best practices on crucial issues for the operation in the territory. This research is disseminated to working group members.