Open Working Group discusses promoting equality, including social equity, gender equality and women’s empowerment No 2

Presentation by Nicole Amerline, Chair of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)

Nicole Amerline, Chair of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) was one of the presenters at the beginning of the afternoon session. She referred to women as the primary victims of conflict and violence. She referred to the progress that had been made on gender equality as a prerequisite for achieving the MDGs. Nevertheless the MDGs didn’t entirely adopt concept of gender equality.

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Open Working Group discusses promoting equality, including social equity, gender equality and women’s empowerment, No 1

Opening statements on gender equality

The discussion on gender equality in the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development in its 8^th session (OWG-8) under the agenda item on promoting equality, including social equity, gender equality and women’s empowerment began with two powerful presentations by Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director, UN Women and Dr Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director, UNFPA. 

Summaries of their statements follows below. 

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Stakeholders Forum Sustainable Development Goals E-Inventory addresses Gender

The Stakeholders Forum Sustainable Development Goals E-Inventory includes gender in its analysis of proposals related to the themes of the Eighth Session of the Open Working Group (OWG-8). It points out that the TST Issues Brief on Gender declares that inequality between men and women ‘is the most pervasive form of inequality around the world and a pressing human rights concern….' 

Gender equality is shown as being the second most common thematic area covered by proposals in the e-Inventory. Sexual and reproductive health and rights is also a high priority issue for stakeholders.

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Call for submissions for Human Rights Council report on maternal mortality and morbidity

In the fall of 2012, the UN Human Rights Council adopted resolution 21/6 entitled ‘Preventable Maternal Mortality and Morbidity and Human Rights’ – the fourth annual resolution on this issue.  Resolution 21/6 welcomed the technical guidance (TG) on the application of a human rights-based approach to the implementation of policies and programmes to reduce preventable maternal mortality and morbidity developed by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) with deep engagement of and input from civil society.  The TG is attached – it is an excellent resource for advocacy and cooperation with governments towards improving maternal health and indeed realizing sexual and reproductive rights more broadly. 

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NGLS Policy Brief No 7: Recommendations on Women’s Human Rights and Gender Equality

The UN Non-Governmental Liaison Service (NGLS) has posted its latest policy brief on Women’s Human Rights and Gender Equality on its website, in preparation for the eighth session of the Open Working Group (OWG) that will take place from 3-7 February 2014.

The brief has been compiled following a consultation with civil society networks and calls for “a universal, inter-linked, multi-sectoral, and holistic approach to the SDGs that upholds the achievement of women’s human rights and gender equality as central to the achievement of sustainable development. Contributors issued a resounding call for both a standalone goal on gender equality and women’s human rights and the ‘mainstreaming’ of gender equality and women’s human rights through comprehensive targets and indicators in the SDGs. Recognizing that women from socially excluded communities face multiple forms of discrimination, the SDGs must include a strong focus on the achievement of equity and social justice.”

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7th Asia Pacific Conference on Reproductive Health and Rights (7APCRSRH)

Visionary Goal Satellite meeting

A satellite meeting was held at the 7^th Asia Pacific Conference on Reproductive Health and Rights (7APCRSRH), sponsored by WGNRR, APA and ARROW.  Panelists included Sivananthi  Thanenthiran (Executive Director, Asian-Pacific Resource & Research Centre for Women), Nobuko Horibe (Director, UNFPA, Asia Pacific Regional Office), Steve Kraus (Director, UNAIDS, Asia and Pacific Regional Office), Sandeep Prasad  (Member, High Level Task Force on ICPD) and was chaired by Rose Koenders  (Asia Pacific Alliance for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights).

The purpose was to present information about the Visionary Goal adopted by the Platform of Platforms, an association of 12 CSO networks last year being used as an advocacy tool during participation in the various parallel processes related to defining the post-2015 development agenda, to review progress and prospects to date and elicit information about specific upcoming opportunities during this year for continuing advocacy.

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Eighth session of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals

The eighth session of the Open Working Group (OWG-8) on Sustainable Development Goals will be held in New York, 3-7 February 2014. It will deal with:

• Oceans and seas, forests, biodiversity
• Promoting equality, including social equity, gender equality and women’s empowerment
• Conflict prevention, post-conflict peacebuilding and the promotion of durable peace, rule of law and governance

The updated draft programme for the meeting is available here

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Further information on Options for moving forward to the next stage of the work of the Open Working Group

The Co-Chairs have written to members of the Open Working Group (OWG) to elaborate further the process for its method of working after the end of this phase of their work.

They will produce a “concise stock-taking report based on the themes covered during the entire stock-taking phase.”  The OWG will start with consensus building on the goals and targets in accordance with GA decision 67/555 through which it was established.

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Options for moving forward to the next stage of the work of the Open Working Group

At the end of seventh session of the Open Working Group (OWG-7), Ambassador Kamau, one of the two Co-chairs presented a series of options for the next stage of the work of the OWG, which will focus on devising a set of sustainable development goals (SDGs) and targets. The process so far has been one of “stock-taking” and after OWG-8 the Co-chairs will “pool together” an overall summary document of the 11-month-long stock-taking process. This can then be used as an ‘aide memoire’ for the next step,  a consultative process, which will start on 3 March.

Options A and B

In preparation for the negotiating stage, he offered delegates the following options for Co-Chair inputs:

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Setting the Stage! Briefing for CSOs and further information

John W Ashe, President of the 68th Session of the General Assembly will be holding an interactive briefing at the UN on 6 February for CSOs in advance of the high-level events and thematic debates that he is hosting for the elaboration of the post-2015 development agenda during 2014.

The purpose of the briefing is to inform and encourage the contributions of civil society, major groups and other stakeholders. See attached invitation sent out by the UN Non-Governmental Liaison Service.

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