Governance

BASF is committed to responsible corporate governance that complies with the law, safeguards values and strengthens its reputation. The increased integration of sustainability aspects into important processes and at various levels of the Group contributes to this – with a view to the entire value chain. We see human rights due diligence as a Group-wide responsibility and we work closely with our suppliers with regard to ethical and environmental requirements.

We are committed to conducting our business activities in a responsible and respectful manner, guided by our corporate values and global standards. Our actions are based on the applicable laws and regulations. Some of our voluntary commitments go above and beyond these. In doing so, we take internationally recognized principles into account. We respect and promote:

• The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the two U.N. Human Rights Covenants
• The 10 principles of the U.N. Global Compact
• The core labor standards of the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the Tripartite Declaration of Principles Concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy
• The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises
• The Responsible Care^® Global Charter
• The German Corporate Governance Code

We stipulate binding rules for our employees with our standards and guidelines that apply throughout the Group. Our aim is to prevent compliance violations from the outset through compulsory training for all employees and leaders. The Corporate Audit department continuously monitors compliance with requirements. The head of our legal and compliance organization also acts as Chief Human Rights Officer and oversees the overarching risk management.

We mainly approach our adherence to international labor and social standards using three elements: the Compliance Program including our Code of Conduct and compliance hotlines, close dialog with stakeholders, and the global management process to respect international labor norms.

We regularly assess our performance in environmental protection, health and safety as part of our Responsible Care Management System.

Our business partners are expected to comply with prevailing laws, regulations and internationally recognized principles. We have clearly defined our expectations in our Supplier Code of Conduct. Here, too, we have established appropriate monitoring systems.

• We report in detail on the key elements of our corporate governance structures and our Group regulations on compliance in the Corporate Governance section
• For more information on our risk management, see the forecast