Civil society must be ‘equal partners’

1st September 2015

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged the legislators to help drive forward the new UN sustainable development agenda and ensure that civil society are equal partners in 'building the future we want.'

"We are being challenged to strengthen our collective resolve to promote peace and security, sustainable development and human rights around the world," said Mr. Ban to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Fourth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament.

In his remarks, the Secretary-General said that the 17 Sustainable Development Goals that form the basis of the new UN agenda are people-centred and planet-sensitive. They provide a plan of action for ending poverty and hunger, and a roadmap for building a life of dignity for all and they promise to 'leave no one behind.'

"People will look to you to hold your governments accountable for achieving the goals, and to write the laws and invest in the programmes that will make them a reality," he said, noting that while democratic principles also run through the entire document "like a silver thread" Sustainable Development Goal 16 addresses democracy by calling for inclusive and participatory societies and institutions.

The UN chief said the task of implementing and monitoring these goals is huge. It requires States to work in strong and close partnership with civil society of all stripes. This has never been more important.

And yet, for civil society, freedom to operate is diminishing – or even disappearing. Dozens of Governments have adopted restrictions that limit the ability of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to work, or to receive funding, or both.

"As we embark on this new agenda, the State and civil society can and should be partners in building the future we want," he said, emphasizing that the declaration the parliamentarians will adopt at the conference outlines their responsibilities in translating the voices of the people into meaningful action.

Civil society is crucial to wildlife conservation around the world. Wild Migration is focusing on building the capacity of wildlife scientists, wildlife policy experts and increasing the role of NGOs in CMS, CBD, CITES and Ramsar policy discussions and through the ECOSOC NGOs Major Group.