Sustainable Development & Human Rights - Archive

By Sarah Dayringer

The UN Statistical Commission (UNSC) is comprised of Chief Statisticians from National Statistical Offices (NSOs) and has a working method of decision by majority vote, rather than by consensus. “Data needs are vast and the Data Revolution is reshaping the landscape quickly,” John Pullinger, former chair of the UNSC said in his opening remarks of the 47th session of the Commission.

Discontent among many UNSC Member States with the Inter-Agency and Expert Group on Sustainable Development Goals [...]

by Kate Donald

This week, the UN Statistical Commission convenes for its annual meeting in New York. At the top of its agenda will be the latest report of the Inter-Agency and Expert Group on Sustainable Development Goal Indicators (IAEG-SDGs), which presents a final proposal for global indicators to monitor the SDGs. In the run-up to the Commission, various civil society groups have expressed their concern about particular indicators or missing indicators, as well as the opaque decision-making process.

The [...]

By Sarah Dayringer

On 8-11 March 2016, the 47th Session of the United Nations Statistical Commission will be held at the UN Headquarters in New York. A major item on their agenda will be the consideration of the global SDGs indicator framework, by which to measure progress on achieving the 169 far-reaching SDGs targets generated by the Interagency and Expert Group on SDGs (IAEG-SDGs). After several rounds of consultation led by IAEG-SDGs co-chairs Enrique Ordaz (Mexico) and Lisa Bersales (Philippines), 231 [...]

By Sarah Dayringer

On 8-11 March 2016, the 47th Session of the United Nations Statistical Commission will be held at the UN Headquarters in New York. A major item on their agenda will be the consideration of the global SDGs indicator framework, by which to measure progress on achieving the 169 far-reaching SDGs targets generated by the Interagency and Expert Group on SDGs (IAEG-SDGs). After several rounds of consultation led by IAEG-SDGs co-chairs Enrique Ordaz (Mexico) and Lisa Bersales (Philippines), 231 [...]

Following a participative and comprehensive process over several years, in September 2015 the United Nations (UN) adopted the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs must now be implemented in and by all countires, including Germany. A wide coalition of Civil Society Organizations there thinks that fundamentally different approaches must be taken in areas of political action. "Germany must accept its responsibility for sustainable development and implement the 2030 Agenda in accordance with its five principles (people, planet, prosperity, peace [...]

Four months have now passed since Agenda 2030 was agreed at the UN in New York. Targets have been set under each of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, but the crucial matter of designating indicators to measure progress remains in the balance. In a new article, the Center of Economic and Social Rights reflects on the difficulties to choose indicators that really measure progress of the Agenda 2030. CESR is concerned over those indicators that have already been defined by [...]

Four months have now passed since Agenda 2030 was agreed at the UN in New York. Targets have been set under each of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, but the crucial matter of designating indicators to measure progress remains in the balance. In a new article, the Center of Economic and Social Rights reflects on the difficulties to choose indicators that really measure progress of the Agenda 2030. CESR is concerned over those indicators that have already been defined by [...]

One of the concrete commitments from the Addis Ababa Action Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 ASD) is the Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM). Spearheaded by Brazil and France, the development of the TFM has been described by Sérgio Rodrigues dos Santos of Brazil, as a “testimony to the strength of multilateralism through collective action.”

Expectations are high for TFM in a briefing on its progress, the President of the UN General Assembly lauded the TFM launched in [...]

One of the concrete commitments from the Addis Ababa Action Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 ASD) is the Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM). Spearheaded by Brazil and France, the development of the TFM has been described by Sérgio Rodrigues dos Santos of Brazil, as a “testimony to the strength of multilateralism through collective action.”

Expectations are high for TFM in a briefing on its progress, the President of the UN General Assembly lauded the TFM launched in [...]

The UN has released the advance unedited version of its report of the UN Development System (UNDS), lightly entitled the “Implementation of General Assembly Resolution 67/226 on the Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review [QCPR] of operational activities for development of the United Nations system.” The UNDS comprises the activities of some 30 agencies – coordinated by the UN Development Group – and the intergovernmental bodies that provide guidance and oversight, such as the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and its commissions [...]

The United Nations has offered its annual assessment of prospects for 2016 in its World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) report. It opened with: “The world economy stumbled in 2015, amid weak aggregate demand, falling commodity prices and increasing financial market volatility in major economies.” In addressing the impact of the downward pressure on economies, UN ASG Lenni Montiel, explained that many countries, “specifically LDCs which rely on commodity exports, will be unable to sustain public spending on [...]

By John Probert

One of a series of Guardian Members’ events, hosted by Guardian Sustainable Business in partnership with Nordea Responsible Investments, the focus of this discussion, facilitated by a Guardian environmental journalist Karl Mathieson, was nominally on the “plethora of pledges from major businesses… in the lead-up to the UN talks”.

In fact, the panel discussion, whilst demonstrating a healthy degree of scepticism, centred mostly on how business can be encouraged to lead in opposing climate change. It was [...]

Over the past fifteen years, the international world has implemented the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). During that time it became evident that “localization” even at the sub-national level was required. Some efforts were made to prepare local authorities for adapting MDGs targets and indicators into their priorities. However, it emerged that municipalities had to be empowered and better equipped to do this more effectively. Even more as in September 2015, the Member States of the United Nations signed on to [...]

The Climate Justice Programme launched a report titled “Making a killing – who pays the real costs of big oil, coal and gas”. The report looks at the costs of climate change through extreme events, such as droughts or storms and slow-onset events such as the rising sea levels, and compares it to the profits made by carbon majors in the same periods. To address these disparaties it suggests the “Carbon Levy Project”. The suggested mechanism would extract a levy [...]

A review of country climate targets reflecting the twin pillars of science and equity has been released by civil society ahead of the UN climate conference in Paris. The new report, Fair Shares: A Civil Society Equity Review of INDCs shows that there is still a big gap between what it will take to avoid catastrophic climate change, and what countries have put forward so far. It is an independent review, supported by social movements, environmental and development NGOs, trade [...]

In light of the adoption of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in September, the question how other international agreements interact with SDGs is highly interesting. The Trade Justice Movement (TJM) has published a report which scrutinizes the effects of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) on the SDGs and developing countries. The report “TTIPing Away the Ladder” finds that, in a number of points, TTIP will interfere with the implementation of the SDGs and the [...]

The Arab NGO Network for Development (ANND) has published a booklet titled ‘Rethinking the development paradigm: Reflections from civil society in the region on Post2015 and Financing for Development’. Some of the central topics are the role the private sector has been given in the Post2015 development agenda and the diminished support for civil society organizations in the region. This shift in stakeholder roles comes before the adoption of “business-binding human rights standards.” In the global partnership for development the [...]

The role of foreign investment in financing development has been a matter of considerable debate in the negotiations leading up to all Financing for Development (FFD) conferences. But deliberations towards the one which took place in Addis Ababa in July 2015 have seen a definite tendency to propose a greater reliance on foreign investment in financing development. It will be important to watch how the Addis Ababa conference frames the regulatory role of the state, and the practices of using [...]

The Women’s Major Group, made up of more than 600 women’s organizations and networks from around the world, recognizes the historic agenda for global sustainable development that 193 governments agreed to on Sunday. At the center of this broad and ambitious plan are the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which will be formally adopted by Heads of State in September at the UN General Assembly. The SDGs chart out global development across social, environmental and economic areas for the next 15 [...]

With a delay of ten days, the UN has now published the final outcome document for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to be officially adopted at a UN Summit on September 25-27, 2015 in New York. The Agenda sets out the aims of the organization and all its members for the coming 15 years in the fields of social development, curbing equalities, economic progress and environmental sustainability. If taken seriously, the 2030 Agenda will require profound changes in policies [...]

After more than two years of intense negotiations, the U.N.’s 193 member states have unanimously agreed on a new Sustainable Development Agenda (SDA) with 17 goals — including the elimination of extreme poverty and hunger — to be reached by 2030. The new goals, which will be part of the U.N.’s post-2015 development agenda and to be approved at a summit meeting of world leaders Sep. 25-27, cover a wide range of political and socio-economic issues, including inequality, poverty, hunger [...]

On July 16th, governments adopted the Outcome of the Third Conference on Financing for Development, held in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), called the “Action Ababa Action Agenda” (AAAA or the “Outcome”). In a collective and sharp statement in response, civil society said that the conference “lost the opportunity to tackle the structural injustices in the current global economic system and ensure that development finance is people-centered and protects the environment.” The lack of ambition of the adopted text, though not a [...]

The United Nations Working Group on business and human rights this week urged Governments across the world to ensure that corporations do not undermine sustainable development, and called for greater transparency and accountability for how businesses address human rights risks and impacts. “States must set a clear vision for connecting the increasing role of the private sector and businesses in development with accountability and agreed standards for business practices aligned with human rights,” the independent expert group said in a [...]

The Third International Conference on Financing for Development is coming to an end. Yesterday, the countries reached an agreement in Addis Ababa on the final outcome document. The Conference on Financing for Development has reportedly seen the presence of 27 heads of government and many more senior government representatives from the capitals. Representatives of UN Agencies, civil society from across the globe and the business community were also taking part in the conference. While the UN reports that the “groundbreaking [...]

This week, we witness state leaders, high-level officials, civil society groups, and business representatives convene for the Third International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD3) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to discuss and agree on an action plan for financing development, including the Sustainable Development Goals to be adopted by UN member states in the September 2015 Summit. “We started from an optimistic viewpoint on FfD3 and now ending with so much disappointment over what seems like retrogression from old agreements [...]