December, 2018
On this page
- Information on the 2019 High-level Political Forum - Webinar recording and presentation
- Apply to become the Alternate Representative of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities
- Apply to be part of the Selection Committee to elect the Alternate Representative of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities
- Calling for inputs for the official submission of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities to HLPF 2019
- It’s time to engage! - HLPF 2019 Regional Sustainable Development Forums
- Information! HLPF 2019 webinar series!
- New Resource! - HLPF 2018 report of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities
- New Resource! Synthesis of Voluntary National Reviews 2018
- Information! Comments submitted by the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities to the Inter-agency Task Force on Financing for Development draft 2019 report
- Participate! DEADLINE 16th December! IDA Global Survey on DPO Participation in Development Programmes and Policies
- Save the Date: Launch of Disability Data Advocacy Working Group and disability data listserv on 7th January 2019
We would like to congratulate Mr. Jose Maria Viera, Chief Executive Officer of the World Blind Union, on being elected to serve as the Permanent Representative of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities (SGPwD) for the next two years. As the Permanent Representative, Mr. Viera will facilitate the public representation of the SGPwD and promote and coordinate the active participation of members in national, regional and global meetings related to sustainable development.
1. Information on the 2019 High-level Political Forum
HLPF 2019 Webinar
On 12 December 2018, the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities held a webinar to provide information about the 2019 High-level Political Forum. The webinar was accessible in International Sign language and real-time captioning.
Access the recording here and read the presentation here.
HLPF introductory video. What is the HLPF and when is it? Which themes will be reviewed? Learn more here!
In 2019, there will be two High-level Political Forums. The first HLPF will be eight days long and convened in July under ECOSOC (next paragraph). The second HLPF, which is the SDG Summit, will be two days long and convened in September at the opening of the United Nations General Assembly (scroll below for more information).
High-level Political Forum under ECOSOC
The meeting of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development convened under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council will be held from Tuesday, 9 July, to Thursday, 18 July 2019; including a three-day ministerial meeting of the forum from Tuesday, 16 July, to Thursday, 18 July 2019. The theme of the forum will be “Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality”
During the first week of the forum, six Goals will be reviewed through panel discussions. These Goals include:
- Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
- Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
- Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
- Goal 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
- Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
- Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development
These thematic reviews will provide an update on where we stand in terms of progress on individual SDGs and offer insight into the implementation of the SDGs. In addition, they facilitate peer learning, exchange of experiences, and identification of lessons learned as well as gaps. During these thematic reviews, the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities will have the opportunity to make interventions and provide recommendations to Member States on how to best achieve these Goals for persons with disabilities.
Volunteering Countries in 2019 HLPF
During the second week of the 2019 HLPF, there will be 51 countries that will report on their progress achieved on implementing the SDGs. These countries include: Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Congo (Republic of the), Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, El Salvador, Eritrea, Eswatini, Fiji, France, Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, Iceland, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Nauru, New Zealand, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Philippines, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Serbia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United Republic of Tanzania and Vanuatu.
During the forum, the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities actively participates in VNR sessions and asks Member States about the situation of persons with disabilities in their implementation of the SDGs at a national level.
Engagement in VNRs for persons with disabilities starts prior to HLPF. We will be holding a webinar on 23 January 2019 at 10:00am to explain how to engage with your government if they are compiling a VNR report. If you would like to learn about how to engage now, you can visit the IDA website for a VNR toolkit: http://www.internationaldisabilityalliance.org/toolkitvnr.
Member States will be asked by the UN to issue short versions of their VNR reports in May and full versions no later than Mid-June. As such, there is time for persons with disabilities to influence these reports in the coming months.
If you require additional support to input into your country’s VNR report, please email us at HLPF2019 [at] ida-secretariat.org ().
High-level Political Forum under United Nations General Assembly
A special session of HLPF, an SDG Summit, will be convened at the highest level under the auspices of the United Nations General Assembly from 24-25 September 2019. Such sessions of the HLPF take place every four years at the beginning of the UNGA session with the objective to provide for political guidance discussions on the SDGs. The Summit aims to provide leadership and reconfirm global consensus and commitments to support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and SDGs.
The UN SDG Summit provides an opportunity to reinvigorate international commitment to the 2030 Agenda, showcase areas of global progress towards the SDGs, and raise awareness on the importance of the 2030 Agenda and SDGs globally.
We are anticipating that the UN will be pushing for an action-oriented/ commitment-oriented SDG Summit. However, the design and outcome of the Summit will largely depend on how the Member States envision the implementation of the SDGs. This will be reflected in the outcome document, which will be a Political Declaration, negotiated by Sweden and Bahamas.
The Alternate Representative’s mandate expires every two years. As such, we are initiating an open, transparent and participatory application process to identify the next Alternate Representative of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities.
The core responsibilities of the Alternate Representative in collaboration with the Permanent Representative of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities are:
- To facilitate the public representation of the SGPWD and to provide strategic direction and guidance.
- To promote and coordinate the active participation of members in national, regional and global meetings related to sustainable development, and to conduct advocacy meetings in New York and regional meetings on behalf of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities.
- To ensure coherence and synergies between the different Working Groups of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities.
More information about the roles and duties can be found in the Terms of Reference of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities here.
We strongly encourage and welcome nominations of all persons with disabilities – and particularly those from underrepresented groups – in rural and urban areas, including persons with psychosocial, intellectual and developmental disabilities, as well as women, older persons and indigenous persons with disabilities.
APPLY! If you wish to apply, click here. Deadline: 25th of January!
The Terms of Reference for the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities foresees that an open, transparent, inclusive and accessible nomination process shall be conducted, and the election of the Alternate Representative shall be undertaken through a Selection Committee. The Selection Committee is open to all who wish to partake. Members of the Selection Committee will be requested to review applications received.
The Selection Committee will rank the candidates through a secure and accessible online survey platform. This will be followed by an online call, where Selection Committee members will discuss their choices and will aim to agree on a final decision. The work of the Selection Committee will remain confidential.
APPLY! If you wish to be part of the Selection Committee, apply here. Deadline: 25th of January!
Each year the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities submits a sectoral position paper to the High-level Political Forum (HLPF).
This year, our submission to the 2019 HLPF will have the overarching theme of “Empowering persons with disabilities and ensuring their inclusiveness and equality with others”. The submission will consist of 5 chapters around the following Goals under review:
- Chapter 1. Education (Goal 4: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all)
- Chapter 2. Employment (Goal 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all)
- Chapter 3. Inequalities (Goal 10: Reduce inequality within and among countries)
- Chapter 4. Climate change (Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts)
- Chapter 5. Title pending. In light of Goal 16, this chapter will address violence, participation in decision-making processes, and access to justice. (Goal 16: Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels)
Deadline: 25th of January!
- INPUT! ENGLISH! We invite you to input into any of the chapters by filling out the form.
- ENTRADA! ESPAÑOL! Le invitamos a participar en cualquiera de los capítulos completando el formulario adjunto.
- CONTRIBUTION! FRANÇAIS! Nous vous invitons à participer à compose des chapitres en remplissant le formulaire ci-joint.
5. It’s time to engage! - HLPF 2019 Regional Sustainable Development Forums
Each year, the five UN Regional Commissions organize regional preparatory meetings leading up to the High-level Political Forum in July. The meetings will be convened between March and April 2019. The regional platforms usually have a pre-meeting of civil society. It is a space to exchange on our advocacy in the five regions (Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, the Arab region and Africa) and to make the link between the national and global levels. It is also an opportunity to update each other on the regional work done around the yearly forums hosted in each region to prepare Member States to the High-level Political Forum.
Regional meetings will take place:
- from 21-22 March in Geneva, Switzerland, for the Europe region (http://www.unece.org/info/ece-homepage.html);
- from 27-29 March in Bangkok, Thailand, for the Asia and Pacific region (http://www.unescap.org);
- from 22-26 April in Santiago, Chile, for the Latin American and the Caribbean region (https://www.cepal.org/?idioma=IN);
- from 16-18 April in Beirut, Lebanon, for the Western Asia region (https://www.unescwa.org); and
- in April with actual date and venue to be confirmed, for the African region (https://www.uneca.org).
CONNECT WITH REGIONAL DISABILITY CONSTITUENCIES! We encourage you to get in touch with the regional representatives of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities has regional coordination mechanisms in place in Asia-Pacific and Europe.
- In Asia-Pacific, the focal point for persons with disabilities is Ms. Savina Nongebatu. Email address: savinafnongebatu [at] gmail.com
- In Europe, the focal point for persons with disabilities is Ms. Marion Steff. Email address: marion.steff [at] edf-feph.org
For further questions on other regions, email hlpf2019 [at] ida-secretariat.org.
6. Information! HLPF 2019 webinar series!
The Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities will hold a series of webinars towards the 2019 HLPF.
The first webinar of the series will be on 23 January 2019 at 10:00am on the topic of VNRs. Register here! The webinar will first introduce the IDA-CBM VNR toolkit and then several speakers will explain their VNR engagement experiences from 2018. Those coming from VNR countries are particularly encouraged to participate in this webinar. In 2019, there will be 51 countries that will report on their progress achieved on implementing the SDGs. These countries include: Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Congo (Republic of the), Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, El Salvador, Eritrea, Eswatini, Fiji, France, Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, Iceland, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Nauru, New Zealand, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Philippines, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Serbia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United Republic of Tanzania and Vanuatu.
In February, we will hold another webinar on VNRs from the regional perspective of DPO engagement in national consultations and the assessment of SDG implementation at the national and regional levels.
Please monitor your email for more information to come on this webinar series.
7. NEW Resource! - HLPF 2018 report of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities
The Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities compiled a comprehensive report on HLPF 2018 focusing on how the rights of persons with disabilities have been addressed during the entire forum. The Annex of the report includes a country by country review of VNRs and references to persons with disabilities. For the complete and full report click here.
Some highlights from the report:
The 2018 HLPF took place from 9-18 July at the UN Headquarters in New York. Maria Soledad, the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General on Disability and Accessibility, was an opening speaker at HLPF 2018. Persons with disabilities were present at the meeting with a large delegation of 31 participants and delivered 6 interventions in the thematic debates during the first week. During the second week, 46 countries reported during the Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) on the SDG implementation. Of the 46 VNRs, 36 included references to persons with disabilities. In addition, the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities delivered 5 statements on behalf of other stakeholders during the Ministerial week. The SGPwD held an official side event on the inclusion of persons with disabilities in societies. The event addressed the implementation of Goal 11 for persons with disabilities by highlighting the importance of universal design, accessibility, accessible transportation, independent living and resilience. At the close of HLPF, the Ministerial Declaration was adopted with 3 important references to persons with disabilities, including in WASH. Overall, the 2018 High-level Political Forum produced increasingly positive references for the inclusion of persons with disabilities in SDG monitoring and implementation.
8. NEW Resource! Synthesis of Voluntary National Reviews 2018
The UN released the official Synthesis of Voluntary National Reviews 2018 Report. In the 2018 synthesis report, persons with disabilities are referenced 32 times throughout the report. Persons with disabilities were offered a standalone sub-section under the ‘Leave no one behind’ section. Most countries considered ensuring the inclusion of persons with disabilities by revising legal regulations, policies and action plans to combat discrimination, and promote rights and equal opportunities for persons with disabilities. Some Member States shared their experiences in applying taxation and financial mechanisms to support persons with disabilities and their families who were in financial hardship or poverty.
From the social perspective, the report highlights Member State efforts to remove infrastructural barriers in education, health care, and workplace facilities, as well as transportation, public spaces and other public services to ensure equal access, promote independent living and facilitate effective inclusion through improvements in the accessibility of public areas, products and services.
According to the report, Member States highlighted undertaking policy measures to ensure inclusive participation in SDG implementation. For instance, Albania reported on specific measures to increase the participation of children with disabilities. Member States referenced persons with disabilities in 8 Goals. These include, Goal 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, and 11. In each of these Goals persons with disabilities are included among the most vulnerable groups at risk of poverty, discrimination, exclusion from education and health, among others. Disability was omitted in the data section, although the section highlights data disaggregation as one of the challenges faced by Member States in designing targeted programmes. Under the capacity building section, Member States identified the lack of systematic disaggregation of data by gender, and especially by disability, as one of the gaps for capacity building. Regarding multi-stakeholder engagement, Australia mentioned the Global Action on Disability Network that brings together civil society, donor governments, multilateral agencies and the private sector to advance disability inclusion in sustainable development and humanitarian action.
The full UN report can be found here.
The Inter-agency Task Force on Financing for Development has published a draft outline for the 2019 report and welcomed the submission of position papers/ contributions, outlining the ideas and thoughts of external stakeholders on any aspect of the Task Force’s work or item in the draft report. The Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities has submitted comments to the Task Force. The submission by the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities follows the same format as the Task Force’s draft report.
To read the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities’ submission, click here.
"Do you represent an organisation of persons with disabilities? Take the IDA Global Survey on DPO Participation in Development Policies and Programmes and tell us how 'Nothing About Us, Without Us' is being ensured at the local, national, regional and international level."
The IDA Global Survey is the first ever global monitoring tool to track the participation of all persons with disabilities and their organisations in development programmes and policies across all development/human rights issues through all stages of development of policies and programmes (from design to evaluation), in line with Article 4.3 of the CRPD. The IDA Global Survey is available in English plain language, which has been translated into Arabic, French, Russian, Spanish, and in International Sign, and is only for representatives of organisations of persons with disabilities (DPOs). Only one response per organisation is allowed. We want hear from YOU, please help us by sharing your experiences and disseminating the survey in your networks.
PARTICIPATE! Click here for more information. Deadline: 16th of December!
We will be launching a Disability Data Advocacy Working Group under the umbrella of the Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities. The Working Group’s objective is to provide a platform for information sharing, learning, dialogue, good practices, and collaboration on disability data collection and disaggregation. Membership in the Disability Data Advocacy Working Group is open to all.
On the 7th of January all will be invited to join our new online community listserv for disability data! Look out for invitation sent to you over email or advertised on the IDA and IDDC listservs.
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If you have comments, questions, or information to share, please email hlpf2019 [at] ida-secretariat.org
