The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises are one of the world's foremost corporate responsibility instruments and are becoming an important international benchmark for corporate responsibility. They contain voluntary principles and standards for responsible business conduct in such areas as human rights, disclosure of information, anti-corruption, taxation, labour relations, environment, and consumer protection. They aim to promote the positive contributions multinational enterprises can make to economic, environmental and social progress. The Guidelines express the shared values of the 37 countries that have adhered to them. These are the 30 OECD members and 7 non-member countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Estonia, Israel, Lithuania, and Slovenia. Latvia's adherence is being completed and an application by Singapore is being considered.)

The adhering countries are the source of most of the world's foreign direct investment and are home to most major multinational enterprises. Although many business codes of conduct are now publicly available, the Guidelines are the only multilaterally endorsed and comprehensive code that governments are committed to promoting.