13 August 2015: The UN Department of Public Information (DPI) NGO Relations convened a briefing on the role of civil society and NGOs in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with speakers highlighting the importance of open, transparent and participative decision-making processes. They also indicated upcoming processes that will play a role in implementing the post-2015 development agenda.

Addressing the briefing on 13 August 2015, at UN Headquarters in New York, US, Tim Mawe, Permanent Mission of Ireland, said there has been increased openness for civil society engagement in intergovernmental processes since the beginning of the OWG process. He said the post-2015 outcome document is “ours collectively,” and civil society inputs brought great value to the negotiations.

Mitchell Toomey, Millennium Campaign, UN Development Programme (UNDP), pointed to the importance of tools designed for collaboration, such as those that involve civil society and the UN system, and which target as many people as possible around the world. He said the MY World Survey and World We Want web platform have been effective tools for enhancing participation.

Jeffery Huffines, CIVICUS, welcomed the SDGs as a product of collaboration between civil society, Member States, the UN and other stakeholders. Looking ahead, he noted the need to identify gaps in the SDG implementation process in terms of substance and governance at the UN and national levels, and to develop capacities for communication at all levels.

Nelson Muffuh, Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General, noted the need to continue involving civil society in post-2015 implementation, and called on stakeholders to come to the UN’s post-2015 summit in September with proposals and commitments for moving the agenda. He said the Tell Everyone campaign, led by Project Everyone, will attempt to reach seven billion people in seven days to inform them of the SDGs and mobilize engagement for implementation.

Francesca Perucci, UN Statistics Division, outlined the importance of indicators to inform policies – not only to monitor and review – and to build data capacity in countries. She announced the open consultation on the global indicator framework for the SDGs, currently taking place until 7 September 2015, which is organized by the Inter-agency and Expert Group on SDGs Indicators (IAEG-SDGs) ahead of their second meeting in October 2015.

Participants raised questions on modalities of civil society engagement in the UN inter-agency task team on science, technology and innovation for the SDGs (part of the Technology Facilitation Mechanism agreed during the Third International Conference on Financing for Development), and enhancing the involvement of youth in UN affairs and sustainable development discussions. [Meeting Webpage] [Meeting Webcast]