Monthly Archive: October 2017

Briefings

UN partnerships in the public interest? Not yet.

by Barbara Adams and Sarah Dayringer
The World Bank, together with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the development banks, have been proclaiming since 2015 that “to meet the investment needs of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the global community needs to move the discussion from ‘billions to trillions’” — that is from billions in official development assistance (ODA) to trillions in investments of all kinds: public and private, national and global, in both capital and capacity. Read more…

Blog / Publications

New Position Paper: Toward global Regulation on Human Rights and Business

Trade and investment protection agreements facilitate business enterprises’ access to markets and raw materials, and protect investor interests with enforceable rights. Although human rights are a cornerstone of international law, so far there are only voluntary guidelines to safeguard them within the activities of global enterprises. This needs to change; human rights need a mandatory commitment. This is where the “UN treaty process” comes in. It offers the chance for binding international regulation of global business: Since 2015, an intergovernmental working group has been negotiating an international human rights treaty that is binding for the contractual parties, outlines clear rules for business enterprises and strengthens access to justice for affected parties. The Treaty Alliance Germany – a coalition of organizations supporting such an approach – have formulated demands in a new position paper. Read more…

Events

Invitation: Launch of Spotlight on Sustainable Development 2017 in Geneva

Join the Reflection Group on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, UNRISD and FES for the Geneva launch of the Spotlight on Sustainable Development 2017 report. Carrying the subtitle “Reclaiming policies for the public. Privatization, partnerships, corporate capture and their impact on sustainability and inequality – assessments and alternatives”, the civil society “shadow” report provides a wide-ranging independent assessment of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals. At the event, contributors will present and discuss key findings and recommendations of this year’s report. Read more …

Blog

Letter from CSOs about the Agenda of the WTO

More than 300 civil society organization from around the world have signed on to a letter regarding the ongoing negotiations of the WTO towards its 11th Ministerial meeting (MC11) in Buenos Aires from December 10 to 13, 2017. The organizations express increasing concern about press reports indicating that some WTO member are pushing a dangerous and inappropriate new agenda under the disgues of “e-commerce”, even though there had been no consensus to introduce the issue during or since the Nairobi Ministerial of 2016. The letter also raises concerns and questions on proposals to limit the scope and effects of public interest regulation, around fishery subsidy disciplines that discourage overfishing by rich countries, agricultural rules and more. Read more…

Blog

UN Security Council Priorities under the French Presidency

This month H.E. Ambassador François Delattre of France is Chairing the UN Security Council. During a #MeetUNSCPres briefing to civil society, he highlighted the situation in the Sahel region of Africa, the protection of civilians and human rights in conflict situations, and the on-going crisis in the Middle East and Myanmar as the key priorities for the French presidency, noting that above all, France seeks a multilateral approach that encourages the UN as a whole to respond to global challenges, voiced by French President Macron in his statement to the UN General Assembly. Read more…

Follow:

The United Nations and system organizations should engage with donors in a dialogue at the strategic level for the adoption of donor reporting templates and accommodating the common information needs, demands and requirements of donors and the regulatory frameworks and capacities of the organizations.

This is one of the main recommendations highlighted in a new report by the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU), an independent external oversight body of the United Nations system, reviewing donor reporting requirements across the UN system.

The JIU review focused on the United Nations system organizations that have the highest number of donor reports and on the 16 major donors to the United Nations system, including the European Commission. Read More.

In new report:  “United Nations System – Private Sector Partnerships Arrangements in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development“, the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) recommends the General Assembly consider a review of the “Guidelines on a Principle-based Approach to the Cooperation between the United Nations and the Business Sector”, with a view to reflecting the changes needed to bring about the increased contribution expected from the private sector based on S-G’s proposals in report A/72/684; and update the common interpretation of General Assembly resolution 92 (I), entitled “Official Seal and Emblem of the United Nations”, shared by the network of legal advisers from all United Nations organizations that are members of the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination.

“The Inspector believes that, in the light of the new approach for a revitalized partnership with the private sector requested in the 2030 Agenda, the Guidelines appear to offer more of a “defensive” line (safeguarding the integrity, impartiality and independence of the United Nations and managing risk) than a “proactive” operational line (facilitating the formulation and implementation of partnerships).”

 

The UN News website (https://news.un.org/en/) has been retooled to include the option to subscribe to news based on selected topics of interest. In addition, subscribers have the ability to sign-up to receive UN News in Kiswahili and Portuguese languages, as well as in six official UN languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish). Subscriptions by topic will also include direct links to the webcasts of events pertaining to each topic.

The UN News also updated their mobile phone application.

Ahora también en español:

Spotlight Enfoques sobre Desarrollo Sostenible 2017

En defensa del interés público

Privatización, partnerships, apropiación empresarial y su impacto sobre la sustentabilidad y la desigualdad: evaluaciones y alternativas. Informe del Grupo de Reflexión de la Sociedad Civil sobre la Agenda 2030 para el Desarrollo Sostenible.