How will the world be held accountable for achieving its new goals?
Key Correspondent - "On 26 September, representatives from a number of non-governmental organisations met to discuss accountability for achieving the new sustainable development goals.
The meeting was a fringe event at the UN General Assembly, at which member states signed up to the new global goals for development. Panelists discussed what kind of framework should be put in place to monitor the goals, and who should be involved.
Thomas Gass, from the UN Department for Economic and Social Affairs, said: “The sustainable development goals are a social contract between governments and citizens. There is need to strengthen the relationship between governments and citizens to have a very inclusive accountability model. We should ask who is left behind and identify who is vulnerable, and why, in order to get everyone on board.”
Involving communities
(...) Another panelist, Robin Gorna, executive director at the Partnership for Maternal and Newborn Health, also argued that communities need to be more involved. “Civil society organisations are often left out from global discussions,” she said. “There is a need to engage people and communities.” (Photo © Nina Benedicte Kouassi)