A critical process outcome of Rio+20 was agreement by Member States to set up an Open Working Group (OWG) in the General Assembly to explore producing a set of sustainable development goals (SDGs). These SDGs should be concise, action-oriented, universally applicable, considerate of current development priorities (i.e. the MDGs), and reflect all three dimensions of sustainable development. This SDG process is a critical pathway to arriving at the post-2015 development agenda. After 18 months of work, the OWG produced a proposal for the SDGs in August 2014, which is comprised of 17 goals that reflect the three pillars of sustainable development. The outcome document was adopted by the General Assembly and will be the basis of the upcoming negotiations for the Post-2015 development agenda; these negotiations will be held from January - July 2014. Each session of the OWG has addressed different sustainable development themes.
The OWG Proposal for the Sustainable Development Goals was welcomed by the UN Secretary General in his Post-2015 Synthesis Report The Road to Dignity by 2030: Ending Poverty, Transforming All Lives and Protecting the Planet. The Open Working Group's Proposal for the Sustainable Development Goals is now being used as a basis for intergovernmental negotiations currently ongoing at the United Nations in New York.
UN Secretary General's Synthesis Report on Post-2015
The UN Secretary General's synthesis Report on the Post-2015 Development Agenda was released at the beginning of December 2014. Entitled "The Road to Dignity by 2030: Ending Poverty, Transforming All Lives and Protecting the Planet", the report calls upon Member States to take inclusive and coordinated action to develop and adopt a truly transformative agenda, with eradication of extreme poverty at its core. The report highlights the need to reduce the burden of NCDs.
Click here to read the joint response to the report
Position Paper on Health in the SDGs
During a series of decision-making sessions held over the course of the spring and summer 2014, Member States of the OWG negotiated and agreed the final themes, contours, and formulations of the SDG framework.
To summarize the views of civil society, the informal health in post-2015 advocacy group produced a collaborative position paper on heath and population dynamics in the post-2015 sustainable development framework. This paper captures the priorities for health, and makes recommendations on how health should be integrated across the SDG framework.
Click here to read the final health thematic position paper
An annex with specific recommendations, including proposed targets and indicators, is available here.
Ninth Session of the OWG on SDGs: 3-5 March 2014
Member States participated in the ninth session of the Open Working Group (OWG 9) on Sustainable Development Goals. The purpose of this session was to discuss the “Focus Areas” document, which outlines themes and priorities for a set of proposed SDGs based on OWG sessions 1-8. Member States also used OWG 9 to discuss the way forward as they undertake this next “decision-making” phase to determine the SDGs, targets, and accompanying narratives.
NCDA Respose to the Focus Areas document
We are pleased to see health and population dynamics included as a standalone area in this document. Importantly, addressing NCDs is highlighted as a priority in this section, alongside other health priorities and actions that could be included in the SDG framework. Additionally, several Member States including Colombia, Norway, Ireland and Denmark, and the CARICOM bloc all supported the inclusion of NCDs. However, there are several ways in which the document could be improved in order to fully address NCD prevention and control in the SDG framework.
Click here to read our full response, and view all responses via the World We Want consultation.
Eighth Session of the OWG on SDGs: 3-7 February 2014
The Eighth session of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals focused on:
- 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 Health in the Post-2015 group produced a short brief on the common priorities and recommendations for health under the themes of OWG 8.
Click here to read the common priorities for OWG 8.
Following OWG 8, Member States held consultations on the format of the outcomes they seek to arrive at in September, to be followed by the decision-making phase of the OWG. Dates for the next phase of the OWG can be found here. A note from the OWG co-facilitators on the options for the outcomes can be found here.
Seventh Session of the OWG on SDGs: 6-10 January 2014
The seventh session of the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals will focus on:
- Sustainable cities and human settlements, sustainable transport
- Sustainable consumption and production (including chemicals and waste)
- Climate change and disaster risk reduction
The informal Health in the post-2015 NGO group formed in September in New York produced a short paper with common priorities and recommendations for health in OWG 7.
Click here to read common priorities for health and OWG 7.
Sixth Session of the OWG on SDGs: 9-13 December 2013
The sixth sessions of the OWG focused on means of implementation and a global partnership for achieving sustainable development, needs of countries in special situations, and more broadly human rights, the right to development, and global governance.
The informal health in the Post-2015 NGO group formed in September in New York produced a short paper final common priorities and recommendations for health for OWG 6.
Click here to read common priorities for health and OWG 6.
Fifth session of the OWG on SDGs- 25-27 November 2013
The Fifth Session of the OWG focused on sustained and inclusive economic growth, macroeconomic policy questions (including international trade, international financial system and external debt sustainability), infrastructure development and industrialization.
The informal Health in the Post-2015 NGO group formed in September in New York produced a short paper final common priorities and recommendations for health for OWG 5.
Click here to read common priorities for health and OWG 5.
Fourth Session of the OWG on SDGs - 17-19 June 2013
The Fourth Session of the OWG focused on two themes, including "health and population dynamics."
Click here to read the NCD Alliance's intervention on health in the SDG framework, delivered on behalf of the NGO Major Group at the co-chairs' hearing at the Fourth Session.
Health indicators in the SDGs
The inclusion of health indicators in these goals will be useful in measuring both health gains and overall progress toward sustainable development. The World Health Organization (WHO) has already developed a set of health indicators for sustainable development, as well as a series of policy briefs on Health in the Green Economy.