Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW)
Recommendations for the Post-2015 negotiations – Sustainable Development Goals, Targets and Indicators: Interactive dialogue with Major Groups and other Stakeholders
25 March, 2015. UN New York
Thank you, Your Excellencies, distinguished delegates. I am Sai from the Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW). I also represent the Asia Pacific RCEM, as well as the Civil Society Platform to Promote SRHR beyond 2015.
We welcome the work done by all stakeholders on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), Targets and Indicators.
Firstly, we emphasise that strategic gender and health indicators, including sexual and reproductive health indicators are critical, as they are powerful social equalisers and will help realise the truly transformative sustainable development agenda. In such an unequal world like ours, approximately 800 women, continue to die every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth, with 99% of these deaths occurring in developing countries and mostly among poor marginalised women. Ensuring sexual and reproductive health services reach the marginalised communities will ensure that women do not die unnecessarily; and women and families do not get into deep debt procuring essential health services and that adolescent girls and young women stay in schools and continue their education.
Secondly as the work on indicators is still taking shape, we recommend the following guiding principles within the indicator framework. Indicators should be: Robust, time-bound, relevant, specific markers of progress and empowering enough to measure people’s well-being1 based on sustainable, equitable and just development; Disaggregated by sex, age, wealth, location, ethnicity, caste, migrant status to unmask social and economic inequalities;
Address structural and systemic barriers faced by women, young people and socially excluded groups; Address inter-linkages, in order to avoid the silo-ed approach of the MDGs; Not a reductionist list, but aim to measure each proposed target in a comprehensive manner. Developed by the technical experts from the UN Statistical Commission with inputs from technical experts, and civil society. WE STAND READY TO DO OUR PART! As we aspire for a bold and transformative SDG agenda, this may call for the inclusion of new and bold indicators, and we urge technical experts to critically examine such prospects.
Lastly, if the experience of the MDGs has taught us anything, it is that development and human rights should go hand in hand in order to close the inequality gap. We emphasise there is “No sustainable development without ensuring rights for all RIGHT NOW AND RIGHT HERE!”
1 Well-being should include enjoyment of human rights, political voice and participation, community trust, and the quality of governance.
25 March, 2015. UN New York
Thank you, Your Excellencies, distinguished delegates. I am Sai from the Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW). I also represent the Asia Pacific RCEM, as well as the Civil Society Platform to Promote SRHR beyond 2015.
We welcome the work done by all stakeholders on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), Targets and Indicators.
Firstly, we emphasise that strategic gender and health indicators, including sexual and reproductive health indicators are critical, as they are powerful social equalisers and will help realise the truly transformative sustainable development agenda. In such an unequal world like ours, approximately 800 women, continue to die every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth, with 99% of these deaths occurring in developing countries and mostly among poor marginalised women. Ensuring sexual and reproductive health services reach the marginalised communities will ensure that women do not die unnecessarily; and women and families do not get into deep debt procuring essential health services and that adolescent girls and young women stay in schools and continue their education.
Secondly as the work on indicators is still taking shape, we recommend the following guiding principles within the indicator framework. Indicators should be: Robust, time-bound, relevant, specific markers of progress and empowering enough to measure people’s well-being1 based on sustainable, equitable and just development; Disaggregated by sex, age, wealth, location, ethnicity, caste, migrant status to unmask social and economic inequalities;
Address structural and systemic barriers faced by women, young people and socially excluded groups; Address inter-linkages, in order to avoid the silo-ed approach of the MDGs; Not a reductionist list, but aim to measure each proposed target in a comprehensive manner. Developed by the technical experts from the UN Statistical Commission with inputs from technical experts, and civil society. WE STAND READY TO DO OUR PART! As we aspire for a bold and transformative SDG agenda, this may call for the inclusion of new and bold indicators, and we urge technical experts to critically examine such prospects.
Lastly, if the experience of the MDGs has taught us anything, it is that development and human rights should go hand in hand in order to close the inequality gap. We emphasise there is “No sustainable development without ensuring rights for all RIGHT NOW AND RIGHT HERE!”
1 Well-being should include enjoyment of human rights, political voice and participation, community trust, and the quality of governance.