Engaging Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in the Sustainable Development Goals
The Policy Forum on Development (PFD) under the auspices of the European Commission (EC) brings together civil society organizations (CSOs), local authorities (LAs) and private sector representatives from different parts of the world to dialogue on global development issues and contribute to EU development policies and programs. One such gathering of CSOs and LAs from the Asia Pacific region took place in Bangkok on June 24 and 25. The backdrop of the gathering was to provide space for collective planning among CSOs, LAs and private sector to influence the agenda in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) negotiations; reinforce commitment to Asia Pacific’s needs for Development Justice, and come up with policy recommendations on the how the EU can build and implement a just and transformative agenda for Asia Pacific.
The International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) has engaged with the PFD since its inception at the global and regional levels. The typology of the actors involved in the PFD’s include: CSOs (including Trade Unions, Cooperatives, NGOs and Foundations in the large sense), LAs, organizations representing the private sector (including Chambers of Commerce and Employers Federations). In the Asia Pacific region the first regional consultation was held in Bali in 2013 and the June meeting in Bangkok was the second; in fact it was the first full fledged meeting involving all the PFD actors. The Cooperatives were represented by ICA staff from the regional offices (Asia-Pacific, Africa and Europe) and by National Apex organizations: Cooperative League of Thailand, Thailand; Malaysian National Cooperative Movement (ANGKASA), Malaysia; National Confederation of Cooperatives, Philippines; and National Association of Mongolian Agricultural Cooperatives, Mongolia.
The SDGs, a vision for universal development, follow the United Nations millennium development goals (MDGs), which were agreed by governments in 2000, and are due to expire at the end of 2015. The SDGs comprise of 17 universal set of goals and 169 targets and indicators that are set to be approved in September this year. In order to make the SDGs inclusive the UN has been undertaking the largest consultation program in its history to gauge opinions on form, process of implementation and funding. In a similar vein, donors, such as the EU have been providing platform for dialogue on the proper implementation and monitoring of SGDs in order to ensure the common objectives of eradicating poverty, reducing inequalities, providing dignity for all and developing in a sustainable way are achieved.
Mr. Balu Iyer at the PFD meeting Bangkok, Thailand.
In order to achieve the SDG goals, huge financial investment will be required. According to the World Investment Report 2014by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, approximately $4 trillion will be required every year from 2015 to 2030 in developing countries alone for the SDGs to be achieved. However, given the current levels of investment in all SDG-related sectors by both public and private bodies, developing countries still face a funding gap of $2.5 trillion per year. It is unlikely that government budgets in the face of fiscal constraints and official development aid (mainly channeled for current needs) will be able to compensate fully for this funding gap. Therefore, investments made by the private sector will be crucial in assisting the realization of the SDGs.
The issue from a cooperative perspective, which are businesses, is the need to have a definition of private beyond the view of investor-owned and multi-national corporations. Here the EC’s differentiated approach to the private sector can be an example for governments and donors to follow. According to the EC communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, The Council, The European Economic and Social Growth in Developing Countries, “Private sector activity can take many forms and will impact on economic development in various ways. The private sector is highly diverse, ranging from enterprising individuals to large multinational corporations and financial institutions; from enterprises creating shareholder value to people-centered social businesses, cooperatives and workers and employers organizations. They may operate at a local, national, regional or international level, in rural or urban areas, in the formal or informal sector and in very different country contexts. Each of these private sector actors requires different conditions and incentives to contribute to development, entailing differentiated approaches to their support and engagement for development.”
Mr. Balu Iyer and Mrs. Savitri Singh with cooperative delegates at PFD meeting.
The meeting in Bangkok provided the opportunity for the participants to hear about the EU Roadmap for CSO Engagement in this the European Year of Development, updates on the 2015 SDG process, and the major EU programs in the Asia Pacific region. The Voices from the Region panel discussion provided the opportunity to hear from regional actors on the key challenges and opportunities of the post-2015 development agenda, including in light of Zero Draft. The gathering called on the EU to champion Development Justice in its policies and actions in Asia and the Pacific. The five foundations of Development Justice: Redistributive Justice, Economic Justice, Social Justice, Environmental Justice, and Accountability to Peoples, provide a transformative framework that aims to reduce inequalities of wealth, power, opportunities, and resources between countries, between rich and poor and between men and women. A rights-based approach would ensure that the human rights principles of equality, equity, non-discrimination and inclusive participation and decision-making underpin its development cooperation in the region.
References:
Policy Forum on Development website
https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/aidco/index.php/Policy_forum_on_development
Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, The Council, The European Economic and Social Growth in Developing Countries - A Stronger Role of the Private Sector in Achieving Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Countries.
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX%3A52014DC0263&qid=1400681732387&from=EN
Development Justice:
http://peoplesgoals.org/devjustice/about-development-justice/
Sustainable development goals: all you need to know:
World Investment Report 2014: Investing in the SDGs: An Action Plan -
http://unctad.org/en/PublicationsLibrary/wir2014_en.pdf
Report by
Mr.Balu Iyer and Mrs.Savitri Singh from the International Cooperative Alliance Asia and Pacific.
