SDG16+ — March 2018
Welcome to your monthly roundup of news and views from the Pathfinders for Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies. If you find this update useful, please pass it on to others working on the SDG16+ targets for peace, justice and inclusion.
1. Launching the Task Force on Justice
Justice is one of three ‘grand challenges’ in the Roadmap on Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies. Earlier in February, the Task Force on Justice was launched and had its first meeting in Buenos Aires.
- Four co-chairs. Germán Carlos Garavano, Argentina’s Minister of Justice and Human Rights; Sigrid Kaag, The Netherlands Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation; Joseph Fitzgerald Kamara, Sierra Leone’s Minister of Justice; and Hina Jilani of The Elders. The chairs have brought together an eminent group of justice leaders and experts.
- Four questions. What’s the justice gap? What’s the case for action and investment? What works to provide access to justice for all? How can we build a platform for local, national, regional and international commitments?
- Read the terms of reference and the challenge paper for the first meeting.
2. Mobilizing for Justice for All
In Buenos Aires:
- The Task Force visited access to justice centers in the poorest areas of the city. They saw first hand how tackling injustice opens the door to sustainable development for those who are left behind.
- The Walk for Justice was led from the Plaza del Congreso to the Plaza de Mayo by Hina Jilani and Mary Robinson from the Elders, as part of the #WalkTogether campaign for Nelson Mandela’s 100th birthday.
- Hina Jilani: “I walked alongside many incredible women and men, who had joined together to ‘tip the scales’ of justice towards those who need it most — including women, minorities and other marginalized groups.” Read more.
- The winners of the Grassroots Justice Prize were announced: Kav LaOved(for its defence of workers’ rights and the enforcement of Israeli labor law), Nossas Cidades (a Brazilian laboratory of civic activism) and the Campaign for Migrant Worker Justice in the USA and Mexico.
- The Justice for All campaign was launched.
3. Where next on justice?
Research for the Task Force is now underway, as justice partners come together in a series of working groups.
- The High-level Group on Justice for Women will meet for the first time in The Hague — more details soon.
- Data enthusiasts have begun work to estimate the size of the justice gap. Their work will underpin the Task Force’s research.
- Other groups will soon start work on challenges such as the case for investment, justice innovation, and transitional justice.
- Get in touch if you’d like to take part in future briefing calls for justice partners or if you want to contribute to the work of the Task Force. We’re especially interested in hearing about how your events, research or expertise can feed into a global conversation on delivering SDG16.3.
4. Pathways for Peace
Prevention is one of three transformative strategies in the Roadmap for Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies. The roadmap also calls for ‘targeted prevention for countries and communities most likely to be left behind’ (catalytic action 3).
The Pathways for Peace report is a landmark study from the United Nations and World Bank on the prevention of violent conflict, recently launched in Washington, DC.
- Jim Yong Kim and António Guterres: “Violent conflict is increasingly recognized as one of the big obstacles to reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.”
- SDG16+ is the key to sustained, inclusive and targeted prevention: “For all countries, addressing inequalities and exclusion, making institutions more inclusive, and ensuring that development strategies are risk-informed are central to preventing the fraying of the social fabric that could erupt into crisis.”
- Read Sarah Cliffe and David Steven’s briefing on the links between SDG16+, Sustaining Peace and the prevention agenda.
5. Pathfinders, Washington DC
A busy week for the Pathfinders at the World Bank:
- Our panel on the implementation of SDG16+ was over-subscribed, with a fire marshal turning people away.
- Somalia’s Minister for Women and Human Rights, Deqa Yasin Hagi Yusuf was one of the speakers: “I am convinced that Somalia is able to effectively take on the role of pathfinder country and help spearhead and champion progress in the area of SDG16.” Read her speech.
- Also a brainstorm on SDG16.1 (co-hosted with OECD, SIPRI and Chemonics) and a briefing for representatives from the offices of the World Bank’s Executive Directors.
6. Violence against Children: the Stockholm Proclamation
In Stockholm, the first Solutions Summit issued a proclamation to end violence against children. Some highlights:
- Measurable results: “The Summit has celebrated the commitment of pathfinder countries whose leadership is at the core of the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children. It is important that they continue to demonstrate significant, sustained and measurable reductions in violence.”
- Eyes on 2019: “Place all children — and especially those most vulnerable at the centre of Agenda 2030 and its progress review at the High-level Political Forum in 2019.”
- A second summit in 2019 to prepare for the HLPF.
- Read our full review of the Summit, and our challenge paper on the implementation of SDG16.2.
7. Learning from INSPIRE
The INSPIRE strategies were at the heart of the Solutions Summit and hold lessons for those working on other SDG16+ targets.
- The rationale: shift energy from highlighting the problem to advocacy for evidence-based solutions.
- Leaders of this shift included Susan Bissell at UNICEF and the EndViolence partnership, Jim Mercy and Susan Hillis at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Kathleen Cravero, and others from key foundations.
- Key players: Alex Butchart and Etienne Krug at the World Health Organization. Dr Tedros spoke at the Solutions Summit. Will WHO’s Director General continue to push for accelerated action to tackle the global epidemic of violence?
8. The #NeverAgain campaign
The 14 February school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in Parkland, Florida has triggered a wave of youth activism against gun violence:
- Why dozens of mass shooting in the US haven’t changed minds on guns.
- How the survivors mobilized. “The first step of the Never Again movement was believing in an idea that the rest of America had grown too cynical to imagine: that Marjory Stoneman Douglas High really could be the last school shooting in America.”
- School shootings are the tip of the iceberg. “Nearly 1,300 children die and 5,790 are treated for gunshot wounds each year.”
- How does this link with the Stockholm Declaration’s promise to inspire “a global, national and local movement” to end violence?
9. Inclusion and participation for sustainable development
The President of ECOSOC, Her Excellency Marie Chatardová, the Czech Republic’s PR, has made fostering sustainable, resilient and inclusive societies through participation of all the priority of her Czech Presidency.
The Pathfinders contributed to a breakfast meeting ahead of the 2018 ECOSOC Special Meeting. Read our six priorities for gathering the evidence needed to underpin greater inclusion and participation through the 2030 Agenda.
10. The roadmap on the road: Addis Ababa
The National Planning Commission of Ethiopia and the United Nations invited the Pathfinders to participate in a high-level dialogue on achieving SDG16:
- Getachew Adem, Deputy Commissioner: “peace, security and strong institutions play prevailing and foundational role” in delivering Ethiopia’s development vision.
- Ahunna Eziakonwa-Onochie, UN Resident Coordinator: “That is why today’s SDG 16 workshop is an important milestone in the journey towards implementing Agenda 2030 in Ethiopia.”
- We’re working with partners to accelerate our support for national implementation of SDG16+ in the coming months. Let us know about your work supporting national implementation.
11. Private sector data builds peaceful and inclusive societies
A new report from the Global Alliance for Reporting Progress on Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies and OEF Research on how the private sector can support better reporting.
- 86 percent of transnational companies have data on corruption, public services, and representativeness of government. A smaller proportion said their company had data on violent deaths and political violence.
- Read the full report.
12. 16+ Forum
The 16+ Forum: bringing together governments, civil society, academia and the private sector to share lessons learned and innovative solutions for implementing SDG16+.
- In Tbilisi, Georgia, 150 participants from 27 countries gathered for the inaugural Annual Showcase. The showcase showed what advancing peaceful, just and inclusive societies can, and has, meant across countries and contexts.
- Coming soon: a short, outcome report will be available online leading up to the High-level Political Forum in 2018.
13. The Open Government Summit 2018
Georgia will host the 5th OGP Global Summit in Tbilisi on July 17–19, 2018. This is one of the biggest events for those working on civic engagement, fighting corruption, and strengthening public service delivery.
- Submit session or speaker proposals by March 31, 2018.
- 75 countries, cities or subnational actors will prepare new action plans this year — a massive opportunity to strengthen ambition across the SDG16+ targets.
14. 2019 HLPF: 479 days to go
In July 2019, we will have a ministerial High-level Political Forum to review SDG16 and 10. In September, leaders gather for the first four-yearly summit on all 17 SDGs:
- We’re working with the Global Alliance and 16+ Forum on a paper exploring how we can come together as a community to seize this opportunity in 2019.
- Also, let us know what you’re planning for the HLPF in 2018.
15. For your diaries in the next month
22 March: launch of the Toolkit on Women’s Access to Justice at CSW, New York
26 March: high-level meeting on sustainable, resilient and inclusive societies through participation of all, Prague
9 April: Global Violence Prevention Forum, Washington DC
Send us details of events with a SDG16+ theme as we will have a calendar up online soon.
16. Introducing our fellows
NYU’s Center on International Cooperation is bringing fellows and visiting scholars on board to support the work of the Pathfinders:
- Maaike de Langen will lead the research for the Task Force on Justice.
- Ben Oppenheim is crunching data on the justice gap.
- Stand by for more announcements and let us know if you have suggestions for visiting scholars.
Plus 16 things we’re reading
Inside the black box of political will ▪ Justice in the Year of #MeToo ▪ A visual facilitation cookbook ▪ SRSG’s annual report on violence against children ▪ Will 2018’s corruption summits lead to action? ▪ Hack the project cycle ▪ The countries most at risk of being left behind ▪ The Rule of Law Index 2017/18 ▪ Participatory budgeting meta-review ▪ Measuring illicit flows ▪ Justice needs in Kenya ▪ Real time analysis of violence ▪ A case for demand-driven open data ▪ The art of the possible in the DRC ▪ Canada’s multi-stakeholder forum on open government ▪ Corruption Perceptions Index 2017
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