European Union Council conclusions on a transformative post-2015 agenda

The Council of the European Union (General Affairs Council), on 16 December 2014 adopted the Council conclusions on a transformative post-2015 agenda. These will underpin the positions of the EU during the negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda. It provides direction and guidance, without being too prescriptive. This is very important at this stage in the process. It is therefore important to read the full document carefully and to use it when working with the EU and its Member States. Meanwhile, some of the key points are highlighted below.

The Council conclusions note the great opportunity provided by the post-2015 development agenda “to address some of the key global issues facing the world today in a truly transformative manner.” Foremost among these issues are the interrelated challenges of eradicating poverty and achieving sustainable development in all its three dimensions (environmental, social and economic). They emphasize the need for “an ambitious agenda” to address these challenges in a coordinated and coherent manner that “leaves no-one behind.” They consider progress so far and the opportunities ahead, as the next phase of the international process begins. 

Synthesis report and Third International Financing for Development Conference

The EU and its Member States are ready to engage in an open and constructive dialogue with all partners and stakeholders.  The Council “welcomes the presentation of the Secretary-General’s Synthesis Report on the Post-2015 Agenda, (See: UN Secretary-General’s Synthesis Report (unedited version) now available!) as well as the opportunity provided by the Third International Financing for Development Conference in July 2015 to address “both enabling policy frameworks and the mobilisation and effective use of financial resources for the achievement of the post-2015 agenda.” They also emphasize the “importance of the ongoing negotiations to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and of reaching an ambitious legally binding agreement applicable to all Parties in Paris in December 2015,” as well as the “upcoming negotiations for a Post-2015 framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.”

Guiding principles

Among its Guiding principles, the Council “reaffirms the vision and priorities of the EU and its Member States as set out in its Conclusions of June 2013 and emphasises that poverty eradication and sustainable development are mutually reinforcing and intrinsically linked.”  As well as integrating the three dimensions of sustainable development, the post-2015 agenda ensure coherence and synergies; and address inter-linkages throughout the goals and targets. The importance of a rights-based approach encompassing all human rights that “respects, supports, and builds on existing multilateral agreements, conventions, commitments, and processes” is also stressed. In addition the Council conclusions recognize that the “universality of the agenda is fundamental and that it should be “global in coverage and universally applicable, while taking into account levels of development, national contexts and capacities and respecting national policies and priorities…” 

Other principles relate to the “complexity of sustainable development and poverty eradication” and the need for the post-2015 agenda to be guided by the principle of accountability. It also recognizes that “Business as usual is no longer an option, whether in terms of human dignity, equality or sustainability.”

Challenges and opportunities

The Council conclusions state that the post-2015 agenda should address the challenges and opportunities related to “poverty; hunger, food security, nutrition and sustainable agriculture; health and well-being; education; gender equality and women's empowerment; water and sanitation; energy; inclusive and sustainable growth, employment and decent work; infrastructure, sustainable industrialisation and innovation; inequality; cities and human settlements; sustainable consumption and production patterns; climate change; oceans, seas and marine resources; terrestrial ecosystems, forests, desertification, land degradation and biodiversity; peaceful and inclusive societies, access to justice and accountable institutions; means of implementation and the global partnership for sustainable development.” It welcomes the approach suggested for the six essential elements in the UN Secretary-General’s Synthesis Report (para 66, fig 1).

The agenda should tackle cross-cutting issues which should be mainstreamed throughout, including disaster risk reduction and resilience and well-managed migration and human mobility, moreover, should be fully recognised in the agenda The Council conclusions stress the importance of maintaining the integrated approach of the OWG proposal for SDGs in the agenda. It should address “without any discrimination, the needs of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable, including children, the elderly and persons with disabilities, as well as of marginalised groups and indigenous peoples; and it must respond to the aspirations of young people.” 

Education, health, sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender and other key concerns

The critical importance of quality education, universal health coverage, and social protection for all is emphasized, together with the need to eliminate malnutrition in all its forms. Empowerment and human rights of women and girls, and ending both discrimination in all its forms and violence against women and girls, must be at the core of the post-2015 agenda and the goals, targets and indicators “across the framework should address legal, social and economic barriers to gender equality, ” as well as involving men and boys. 

The Council conclusions confirm the commitment “to the promotion, protection and fulfilment of all human rights and to the full and effective implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action and the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the outcomes of their review conferences and in this context sexual and reproductive health and rights.” 

Furthermore, the Council confirms the importance of strengthening civil society and ensuring an enabling environment for civil society actors as being essential.