Strengthening civil society engagement with the …civicus.org › images › CivilSocietyEngagementWithUN.pdfStrengthening civil society engagement with the United Nations 5 Introduction

Strengthening civil societyengagement with theUnited NationsPerspectives from across civil society highlightingareas for action by the UN Secretary-General.

UNA-UKNew York Office

“We hope that the contributions in thisdocument, which reflect perspectivesfrom all over the world, will supportour common aim: fostering strongerrelationships between the UN andcivil society.” The 1 for 7 Billion campaign

Local civil societyactivists gather inZurich, Switzerland, aspart of an awarenessraising campaign for theUN SustainableDevelopment Goals. P

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Dear Secretary-General, As you assume office, 1 for 7 Billion congratulates you on your appointment and applauds your vision of the United Nations and ‘we the peoples’ working jointly for the well-being of humanity. We welcome your remarks to the General Assembly on 19 October 2016, which emphasised the importance you attach to civil society as a crucial instrument in solving global problems, as well as your assertion that dialogue and cooperation with civil society are central to the UN across its activities. We also appreciate the example you set last year by actively participating in civil society fora to explain your candidacy for the position of Secretary-General, further contributing to the transparency of the selection process. 1 for 7 Billion, which comprises some 750 civil society organisations (CSOs) with a combined reach of almost 200 million people worldwide, was formed in 2014 to campaign for a fair, open and inclusive selection process to appoint the most qualified candidate as Secretary-General. Much has been achieved in the last two and a half years yet much more needs to be done to ensure that these crucial gains are maintained and built upon. Throughout the campaign, 1 for 7 Billion worked hard to improve the selection process by advocating and supporting input from civil society. We were delighted that the new procedures enabled CSOs and people from all over the world to engage with the process. The high level of public interest was remarkable, demonstrating the huge appetite that exists around the world for closer interaction with the United Nations. Building on that interest, four of the campaign’s founding CSOs – the United Nations Association – UK, the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung New York Office, CIVICUS and Avaaz – have compiled suggestions from 1 for 7 Billion supporters for improved civil society-UN relations. While the views contained in the compilation are those of the individual contributors, rather than 1 for 7 Billion, they reflect key principles and proposals for cooperation with civil society for which we seek your support:

• The recognition of civil society as an integral part of a coherent system that delivers on the UN agenda;

• Respect for, and safeguarding of, the consultative rights of CSOs through transparent rules of procedure;

• The full realisation and regularisation of CSO engagement with the General Assembly, the Security Council and other UN fora;

• Practical steps to enhance access to the UN, including by those left furthest behind, such as championing broad and diverse civil society and public participation, overcoming logistical and security obstacles and utilising the full potential of modern technology.

We hope that the contributions in this document, which reflect perspectives from all over the world, will support our common aim: fostering stronger relationships between the UN and civil society. In this regard, we were greatly encouraged by your appointment as Deputy Secretary-General of Ms Amina Mohammed, who helped to ensure unprecedented levels of civil society participation in the process leading up to the adoption of the Agenda 2030. We are counting on you to be the UN champion for civil society and wish you every success in your work.

Yours sincerely, The 1 for 7 Billion campaign

ContentsIntroduction ....................................................................................................5

Civil society articles:

01 A Committed and Determined Ally for the World’s Most mpossible JobBarbara Adams ........................................................................................8

02 Overcoming the Politics of the UN’s NGO CommitteeEleanor Openshaw ..................................................................................9

03 Young People Need a Seat at the Table of UN Climate Change Negotiations Kazi Ateea............................................................................................10

04 Engaging Millennials Crucial to Achieving the UN’s Ambitious AgendaNoa Gafni Slaney ................................................................................11

05 Inclusiveness Is the Key to Implementing the SDGsFarooq Ullah........................................................................................12

06 Online & on the Ground: Connecting Those Most in Need with the UNAya Chebbi ..........................................................................................14

07 Civil Society Remains Vital to Success of Arms Control ProcessesRobert Perkins ....................................................................................15

08 Gender Considerations for the New Secretary-GeneralMelina Lito ..............................................................................................16

09 The Role of Civil Society in Enhancing the Peacebuilding Commission Rachel Madenyika ................................................................................17

10 Persons with Disabilities and the United Nations System Vladimir Cuk........................................................................................18

11 Historic Civil Society Participation in General Assembly Hearings with UN Secretary-General Candidates Volker Lehmann ..................................................................................20

12 Appointment of UNHCR Chief and Other Senior Roles Could Learn from Recent UNSG Process Nan Buzard..........................................................................................21

13 Supporting Civil Society across the UN System and BeyondBen Donaldson....................................................................................22

5Strengthening civil society engagement with the United Nations

Introduction The opening words of the UN Charter makeit clear that the United Nations is not thepreserve of states alone.

After two devastating world wars, peopleacross the globe felt keenly that they had astake in this new organisation, created tosave succeeding generations from thescourge of war. Civil society was engagedin discussions on the shape of the UN fromthe outset, feeding into the drafting of theUN Charter which went on to beproclaimed in 1945, not in the name ofgovernments, but in the name of “We thepeoples of the United Nations”.

Throughout the seven decades that havefollowed, civil society organisations (CSOs)have continued to play an instrumental rolein furthering the UN’s objectives, fromassisting with smallpox and polioeradication programmes on the ground toshaping recent landmark agreements onsustainable development and climatechange.

Today, the world’s seven billion peopleremain the Organisation’s most importantstakeholders and beneficiaries. It is throughtheir eyes that the UN’s record should bemeasured.

There are many ways in which the views ofordinary people are reflected at the UN,through governments, parliaments and theprivate sector for example, as well asthrough UN officials and experts. But it isoften CSOs that are at the forefront of thiswork, standing up for the most vulnerable,for those unable to speak for themselves,and for those who are excluded,intentionally or otherwise, from formalprocesses.

CSOs engage with the UN in numerousways, on the ground and at headquarters,and there are many excellent examples ofCSO partnerships, such as the 2015MyWorld survey which CSOs promotedwidely to help almost 10 million peoplefeed into the development of the SDGs.

Above: Civil society and theUnited Nations workingtogether: A nurse from theCSO World Vision administersWorld Health Organization poliovaccinations to displacedchildren in South Darfur, April2014.

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However, the quality and impact ofcollaboration varies greatly, and there is stilla long way to go to ensure that the voicesof the most vulnerable are heard and thatUN programmes are responsive to theneeds of those they are intended to serve.

António Guterres took office on 1 January2017 following the most open selectionprocess in the UN’s history, one that sawunprecedented engagement from civilsociety and the public. The process demonstrated – and stimulated – CSOs’desire for deeper inclusion in the UN’swork.

But at this time of global uncertainty, theUN is stretched to the breaking point.More and more people are losing faith ininstitutions and political leadership, andnationalistic trends are presenting a gravechallenge to the rules-based internationalsystem from which we all benefit. Publicsupport for the UN is vital if a multilateralorder is to be sustained, let alone deliver

ambitious agendas on development andclimate.

The UN must do all it can to protect,expand and in some cases, stem theshrinkage of civil society space bothinside and outside the UN. Determinedwork on this front will help the UN earnlegitimacy with the ‘peoples of the UnitedNations’ and strengthen publicunderstanding and support for theOrganisation.

For these reasons, the UN cannot afford tomiss opportunities to deepen engagementwith civil society and harness the energyand capacity of those, such as 1 for 7Billion’s supporters, who want to workwith the UN and rise to the challenge ofsecuring a better world for us all.

A Champion of CivilSocietyThe UN’s effectiveness is contingent onthe trust placed in it by peoples andgovernments. As the Organisation’s topdiplomat and an international civilservant, the Secretary-General has animportant role to play not only in leadingthe UN’s programme of work, but also inimproving public perceptions of theOrganisation.

6 Strengthening civil society engagement with the United Nations

“Dialogue and cooperation with civilsociety will, I’m sure, be a centralaspect of the activities of the UN in thenext few years, not only because of myown activities, but because of theconcerns that all the UN bodies have,making sure that partnership becomesa key element in solving globalproblems.” António Guterres responds to a question from 1 for 7 Billion at aninformal meeting of the General Assembly, October 2016

“The UN must do all it can to protect,expand and in some cases, stem theshrinkage of civil society space bothinside and outside the UN.”


Above: Candidates for theposition of Secretary-Generaltake questions from civilsociety at an event organisedby the United NationsAssociation – UK and partners,London, June 2016.

This means ensuring that the UNrepresents, as best it can, the hopes andneeds of its primary stakeholders – theworld’s seven billion people.

The more open, inclusive recruitmentprocess has helped revitalise the UN,enhance its credibility, and reinvigorate itspopular appeal. Having come through thisnew process gives the Secretary-General amandate to lead on reforms relating toinclusivity and to capitalise on thewidespread appetite for greater civilsociety and public participation in the UNsystem.

Proposals for ImprovedCivil SocietyEngagementAt present, substantial barriers remain tocivil society participation at the UN. Thispublication, compiled by four of the 1 for 7Billion campaign’s founding CSOs – theUnited Nations Association – UK, theFriedrich-Ebert-Stiftung New York Office,

CIVICUS and Avaaz – showcases articlesfrom a diverse range of perspectiveswithin 1 for 7 Billion’s community thatoutline practical proposals for improvedcivil society engagement at the UN.

The articles are not intended to be acomprehensive or representativereflection of the opinions of the world’scivil society, but rather a collection ofperspectives from individual civil societyorganisations united by their aspiration towork productively alongside the UN inpursuit of common interests.

Whilst the collection touches on a varietyof areas of the UN’s work, the span is byno means exhaustive. Despite this, webelieve the publication highlights importantareas of concern and makes a compellingcase for improvements to the way the UNengages civil society.

We invite the Secretary-General toshine a light on this agenda and drive it forwards where possible, andencourage Member States anddecision-makers to support MrGuterres in his work.

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The UN Charter gives civil societyorganisations (CSOs) rights of consultationwith Member States, but the rules andprocedures needed to make this a realityhave not kept pace with the myriad waysin which the UN system has grown, andthe UN Secretariat has often been remissin failing to take the lead and initiative toclose this gap. Nevertheless, the UN‘system’, however disjointed, has availeditself of the active engagement of CSOsas implementing partners in difficultsituations and has benefitted from theirenergetic awareness-raising and outreach.

Over the last few decades, CSOengagement with the UN has accumulatedan impressive catalogue of good practicesthat give real meaning to their ‘consultative’status. These range from participation informal hearings to inclusion in expertmeetings and in informal consultationsamong UN Member States. Yet the UNSecretariat has been slow to provide theinstitutional leadership that would enableCSOs to be an integral part of a coherent,value-based, people-and-planet-centredsystem – and reduce all parties’ transactioncosts.

For example, the Secretariat has not been aconsistent and energetic advocate of CSOconsultative status with the UN GeneralAssembly beyond piecemeal, special-occasion resolutions. And engagementwith the Security Council is on a grace-and-favour basis, and heavily skewed in favourof the well-resourced NGOs that canmaintain a New York presence – a visachallenge as well as a financial one formany organisations.

While the informality of engagement hasbeen a valuable component of buildingtrust, it cannot be the only means ofengagement.

Such institutional leadership is especiallyimportant at a time when CSOs and socialmovements are experiencing restrictionsand strong push-back in many nationalsituations.

Many areas of CSO expertise andexperience – in service provision, as humanrights defenders, in solidarity at communitylevel, a watchdog function, research andanalysis, campaigning and, increasingly,data collection – are vital as the UN and itsMember States seek to implement theircommitments, including the recentlyadopted 2030 Agenda for SustainableDevelopment.

Much progress has been made in terms ofregarding CSOs as an importantconstituency with their own accountabilityrequirements and standards, not a poolfrom which to select individual talent. Still,the UN system has a tendency to pick andchoose CSO engagement as fits itsdifferent agendas, which is not consistentwith respecting the autonomy and self-organisation of CSOs, nor with respectingand supporting diversity of participation,perspectives and positions committed tothe public sphere. However, it is thisindependence and autonomy that bringsquality and durable support for UN values.

The UN is in danger of losing its uniquevalue-based place among otherwise deal-making entities of multilateralism, andprojecting the stodgy attributes of a pre-occupied, self-concerned bureaucracy –rather than that of a consistent champion ofthe public interest.

CSOs will be a consistent andconstructively critical ally as the UN renewsits determination to tackle the difficult andcomplex issues of sustainabledevelopment, peace and justice – andveers away from ‘low-hanging fruit’ anddeal-making limited by powerful and narrowinterests. CSOs are committed allies as thenew Secretary-General Guterres steers theUN towards revitalising itself and re-claiming its value-based and premier role inmultilateralism.

A Committed andDetermined Ally for theWorld’s Most Impossible JobBarbara Adams is Chair of the Board of Global Policy Forum. Previouslyshe worked for the United Nations for 20 years, and with internationalcivil society networks.


“CSOs are committed allies as the newSecretary-General Guterres steers theUN towards revitalising itself.”

Civil society is indispensable to the workof the United Nations. It contributes todiscussions on international law and globalrules and policies, and to working for theirimplementation. Although consultationwith NGOs is recognised in the UNCharter, undue restrictions are beingplaced on the access to and participationof NGOs in the United Nations. One of themost egregious examples of this isthrough the ECOSOC Committee onNGOs (the NGO Committee).

The NGO Committee recommendsapproval of consultative status for non-governmental organisations, enablingaccess to and participation in a range ofUN bodies and processes. Amongst thenineteen members of the Committee arestates with some of the worst records onprotecting civil society space.

Some states that fear organisations whoprovide an alternative narrative to their ownwill try to block them. Through multipledeferrals of applications, members of theNGO Committee can deny NGOs access tothe UN. Human rights organisations are 50per cent more likely to be blocked thanothers. Those working on the rights of Dalitcommunities, LGBTI people and migrants,as well as those working on sexual andreproductive rights and impunity are also atrisk of being treated unfavourably. Multipledeferrals of applications on no reasonablebasis is one controversial method used bymembers of the NGO committee ofexcluding organisations on political grounds.

The practice of the NGO Committee hasbeen the focus of criticism by states, UNofficials, UN independent experts and civilsociety members. Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has noted ‘adisturbing pattern of actions against NGOswhose work is essential to progress’around the world and ‘even within theUN’. He has been clear in stating, ‘(w)ecannot allow this authoritarian impulse tosilence NGOs’.

The UN should be a forum for airingdiverse views. Through open debate theUN provides a vital forum for makingadvances on human rights protection andpromotion and building consensus onissues considered controversial. For asmall minority of Member States to

exclude the voices of certain marginalisedgroups from the UN on political grounds isillegitimate and counterproductive.

Fundamentally, we need to effect achange in culture whereby UN MemberStates acknowledge the value of the inputand constructive criticism of civil society.Individuals’ rights to access andcommunicate with UN bodies must berespected, safeguarded and encouraged.

A central part of this is ensuringtransparency, consistency and impartialityin the work of the NGO Committee.Webcasting of its sessions and clearercriteria guiding the considerationoapplications would be a key first step.States supportive of civil societyengagement at the UN must also beprepared to put themselves forward ascandidates for the NGO Committee.

The UN Secretary-General can set a toneand provide an important steer towardsthese objectives. In this regard, we call onthe new Secretary-General to be achampion of civil society around the worldand to commit to robustly defending andsafeguarding NGOs’ access to andparticipation in the UN system.

Overcoming the Politics ofthe UN’s NGO Committee Eleanor Openshaw is Co-Director of the NY office of InternationalService for Human Rights (ISHR) and leads ISHR’s work to promoteNGO participation and protect civil society space at the UN.


Deferred until 2017: 235

Successful: 188

Unsuccessful: 41

Applicationsconsidered: 464

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Barriers to participationMany non-government organisations (NGOs) were denied consultativestatus during the NGO Committee’s 23 May – 1 June 2016 session:

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The time has come. COP22 has ended.But do those who take part in the climatetalks understand what is at stake?

By the year 2050, my roots will be gone.Every day the island of Sandwip inBangladesh breaks down a little more.Bangladesh is set to disappear by the endof the century. Rising sea levels, deadlierstorms, increased health conditions – ourworld is falling apart. This is the reason formy passion. From a young age, I heardstories of the cyclone that destroyed myparents’ homeland. It never came to mind,until recently, that we humans may havebeen the reason why this storm was sosevere. And never before did I realise thatI could play a part in changing the fate ofthis island and that of others.

The future is ours, and truly it is. Asmillennials, we often think “How did weeven end up here?” “How could previousgenerations put us in this situation, wherethey are killing our earth?” But it’s difficultto question the choices of those in power

when the voices of young people arerarely heard. And in my experience, when Ihave been invited to the table to talk withheads of states, those in power are moreconcerned with hearing themselves talkthan me. This can cause young people tolose faith in those who have power.

The Future Is Ours campaign plays acrucial role in advocating for youth voicesto play an effective role during climatenegotiations. The COYs (Conferences ofYouth), sponsored by the UN one monthprior to the COPs (Conferences of theParties), have little influence on COPproceedings and run the risk of becomingthe symbol of the patronising way youngpeople’s views and aspirations areseparated and at times treated as asideshow.

From what can be seen, young peoplewho have been able to attend COPs arerarely allowed in the actual negotiationrooms, reinforcing the impression thatyouth voices are of little value.

Young People Need a Seatat the Table of UN ClimateChange Negotiations Kazi Ateea is a youth climate change activist and co-signatory of newclimate change campaign The Future Is Ours, calling for those with thebiggest stake in the future to be represented at the table ofnegotiations in future climate change talks.


Below: Former Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon with agroup of participants from theClimate Action High-levelDialogue, taking place as partof the UN Climate ChangeConference in Peru (COP20),December 2014.

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As the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy onYouth has said, “Space must be created toensure the voices of young people aretruly heard on the issue of climatechange.” Millennials need a formal seat atthe table of future COP negotiations. Thiscould be achieved by creating a symbolicnew entity representing those under 30and allowing them to take part in COPproceedings with the same status ascountry representatives.

The greatest risk to humans is humansand human-induced climate change.We’ve seen nations destroy themselves inmassive civil wars. Climate change is theworld’s civil war. It is something that canstill be stopped with immediate action but

politicians seem unwilling to do what isneeded.

In fifty years, when Sandwip and otherislands are under water, the people whoare currently making decisions on behalf ofus will not be here to see the results. Weas millennials need to take the lead andchange the direction in which we areheaded. We must be the ones to say whathappens. The time is now, and the futureis ours.

“We’ve seen nations destroy themselvesin massive civil wars. Climate changeis the world’s civil war.”

Millennials are not alone in their desire tochange the world. But understanding howthey are distinct from previous generationsis crucial if the UN is to engage andharness the capacity of this influentialcommunity in pursuit of ambitious UNinitiatives like the SDGs and the ParisClimate Agreement.

Millennials are pragmatic. They havewitnessed the failure of protestmovements like Occupy Wall Street toachieve their aims, and instead are willingto work within existing systems to drivechange. Millennials want to push business,government and institutions to do more,since there is a strong belief in the powerof these systems to make an impact.

The UN could learn from initiatives such asthe World Economic Forum’s GlobalShapers Community, a network of youngleaders in city-based hubs around theworld who cross-mentor each other andpartner with established leaders to drivethe social good agenda forward. Similarschemes for millennials to network andshare their unique perspective andexpertise with those in UN leadershippositions could similarly help drive theUN’s agenda forward.

There is also a feeling among youngpeople that doing good should be fullyintegrated into their daily lives, from the

companies they work for to the productsthey purchase and the organisations theydonate time, money or clicks to.

As a joint initiative of UNDP and the UNFoundation, +SocialGood taps into thisdesire to combine socialising with doinggood by convening young people to takeaction towards the SDGs. The+SocialGood community gathers aroundmajor events, such as the opening of theGeneral Assembly, in meetups around theworld. Meetups vary from hackathons(intense problem-solving sessions) tolivestreamed events with their appealbased on their solution-orientedapproaches to global issues that alsocontain an element of fun. The UN shouldbuild on and highlight positive exampleslike +SocialGood, ensuring it harnessessuch capacity where relevant.

As the first generation of digital natives,millennials are empowered by technology.Social media is the number one activity onthe web and, for young people, it isthe top source of news, the biggestinfluence on voting behaviour and thereason that millennials are more likely togive to global, as opposed to local, causes.

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is a greatexample of technological empowerment.Campaigners were recorded pouring icywater over themselves before posting the

Engaging Millennials Crucialto Achieving the UN’sAmbitious Agenda Noa Gafni Slaney is the founder and CEO of Impact Squared, acommunity-building consultancy. She is a Fellow of Social Innovationat the University of Cambridge.

video on social media and nominatingsomeone else for the challenge. Thecampaign went viral, raised over $100million and engaged leaders from allsectors and regions, from Bill Gates to LeiJun. With the UN’s resources stretched tobreaking point, the Organisation shouldwork with socially conscious millennialsfor innovative solutions to fundingproblems.

While there is much work required toreach those with little access to

technology, it is clear that a largeproportion of millennials see the worlddifferently and are well placed to play amajor role helping address globalproblems. The UN’s success will dependon engaging effectively with all agegroups, online and offline; however, as ageneration with a truly global mindset andone that is set to take leadership positionsin the coming decade, engagingmillennials will be crucial to achieving theSDGs.


Right: The ALS Ice BucketChallenge is a greatexample of technologicalempowerment

Inclusiveness Is the Key toImplementing the SDGs Farooq Ullah is a Director of Stakeholder Forum and Co-Chair of the UKStakeholders for Sustainable Development – an open, multi-stakeholder platform that supports public, private and voluntaryorganisations working towards sustainable development in the UK.

The process to establish the UN’s 2030Agenda for Sustainable Development andthe associated Sustainable DevelopmentGoals (SDGs) was one of the mostinclusive in humanity’s history. Withparticipation, transparency and multi-stakeholderism – effective collaborationbetween government, civil society and the

private sector – riding high throughout thenegotiations, the resulting SDGs canrightly be held up as an example ofinclusive policy-making.

As we now switch gears towardsimplementation of the SDGs (and the Parisclimate deal) it is necessary to replicatethis esprit de corps at the regional,

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national and local levels whereimplementation truly takes form.

It is clear that public policy alone will beinsufficient to achieve the SDGs. But whilemost stakeholders, including civil society,will likely see their missions reflected inthe SDGs, do we have the right processesand mechanisms in place to allow them tomeaningfully engage?

The SDGs provide two key operationalprinciples: those of Universality andLeaving No One Behind. How to embodythese principles in practice is both unclearand challenging.

Multi-stakeholderism offers a means bywhich these ambitious principles can berealised as well as ensuring that effortsare coordinated and productive.

But there must be alignment betweenglobal goals and local action. As resourcesfor sustainable development are scarce,the need to be both effective and efficientis greater than ever. Each country willwant to approach this task in its own way.But some key elements will need to beaddressed everywhere. At the national andlocal levels we must now:

• Improve government and legislativemachinery for sustainable development;

• Model new and better processes forengaging all international and domesticstakeholders;

• Create or renew national sustainabledevelopment strategies or frameworksin light of the SDGs;

• Review policies and programmes in theSDGs, including the application of greeneconomy principles and instruments fordomestic resource mobilisation; and

• Deliver formal and informal education,public awareness and capacity buildingtraining.

Multi-stakeholder models being pursuedon this basis should be encouraged, asshould shared learning between initiativesthat follow this approach, such as the UKStakeholders for Sustainable Development(UKSSD).

The UN can show leadership on multi-stakeholder action by advocating theestablishment and resourcing of:

• Stronger and more formal mechanismsfor including non-governmentalstakeholders in the delivery of theSDGs, and

• Regular, transparent and inclusivereporting mechanisms including civilsociety, in order to consider how bothofficial and stakeholder-held non-officialdata can be collected and reported on.

In a time of seismic socio-economic shiftscoupled with a growing sense ofprotectionism and tribalism, we need apositive vision for the future that peoplecan get behind. The SDGs offer a commonglobal framework for a fair and greenfuture for our world, through which allstakeholders, if well-coordinated, can playtheir part in responding to globalchallenges.

By highlighting best practices ofcooperation between governments, theprivate sector and civil society in thecreation of the SDGs, the UN can facilitatethe latter’s involvement in theimplementation of the SDGs and in thisway contribute effectively to thisambitious agenda.

Below: Rally in New Yorkcalling on world leaders toraise their ambitions as the UNSustainable DevelopmentGoals are adopted at theUnited Nations, September2015.

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The distance between the UNHeadquarters in New York and myhometown in Tunisia has shrunk over thepast two decades. Today, in the age oflaptops and mobile data, the United Nationsfeels more accessible, but many in theglobal South are still unable to participate.

When the United Nations was designing theMillennium Development Goals (MDGs) inthe late 1990s, the public had little say inthe process. Fifteen years later, thankslargely to the internet and onlineconsultations, over nine million individualswere able to engage in setting priorities forthe Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Before the SDGs, the UN all too often onlyheard from large, well-resourcedorganisations, which may not reflect thereality at a community level, while thevoices of the citizens who are most inneed are not heard. But this new agendaprovides an opportunity to re-balancepower relations between civil society inthe global North and South.

The UN is not just responsible forpresiding over the SDGs, it has toimplement them internally as well. Goal 16on peace, justice and inclusive institutionscontains objectives for democratising UNdecision-making processes, making themmore representative of the global South:

• 16.6 Develop effective, accountable andtransparent institutions at all levels

• 16.7 Ensure responsive, inclusive,participatory and representativedecision-making at all levels

To achieve these targets, the UN needs toembrace the digital age with an emphasison “leaving no one behind”. The first aspect of this is to providesimplified information via the UN website,such as accessible versions of key UNdocuments that can be downloaded on aphone. Better use of infographics to helpthe public better understand UN policyprogrammes would also help.

But online support is only part of thesolution. There remains a major digitaldivide globally, with 60 per cent of theworld offline, the vast majority in CentralAfrica, Southeast Asia and the MiddleEast. As a result, a considerable amount ofindigenous and traditional knowledge fromcommunities off the grid is not captured inintergovernmental processes.

To bridge this gap and connect ruralcommunities to the World Wide Web, theSDGs aim to “provide universal andaffordable internet access to the leastdeveloped countries by 2020”. In terms ofinfrastructure, the UN should encouragegovernments to scale up internetprovision, improve internet literacy andprioritise mobile access for those who arein remote areas. We learned in 2011,during Tunisia’s historic political transitionto democracy, that digital tools havebecome fundamental in mobilising themasses to take a stand on social,economic and environmental issues.

But it cannot stop there. To reach thosemost in need, with no imminent hope ofentering the digital age, the UN mustprovide better support to bring the voicesof civil society directly from grassrootsorganisations. On this front, the UN shouldensure timely announcements ofmeetings and make more travel grantsaccessible to those who are ‘off-grid’ aswell as working with host countries toease the often-restrictive visa processesthat attendees face. Only by enabling aplatform for the hardest-to-reach voicescan the UN ensure that it truly reflects theneeds of the world’s seven billion people.

Online & on the Ground:Connecting Those Most inNeed with the UN Aya Chebbi is the founding Chair of the African Youth Movement, arenowned blogger and an award-winning pan-African feminist activist. Sheis also a board member of CIVICUS, world alliance for citizen participation.

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Source: Offline and falling behind:Barriers to Internet adoption,McKinsey&Company, August 2014


Civil society has played a critical role in therapid developments in arms control overthe past two decades. From theagreement of global bans on antipersonnellandmines and cluster munitions, to thefirst legally binding internationalinstrument to regulate the trade inconventional arms and ammunition, to therecent UN vote to begin work toward aban on nuclear weapons, civil society hasbeen at the heart of all recent civilianprotection initiatives.

The Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) was achievedthrough a partnership betweenprogressive governments and global civilsociety from all regions of the world,mobilised by the Control Arms Coalition.Throughout the ATT’s development, civilsociety contributed a wealth of experienceand expertise across many fields includingthe areas of human rights, gender, publichealth, and conflict reduction, as well asbringing the voices of armed-violencesurvivors to the centre of States’discussions.

Following the ATT’s entry into force in2014, the focus has turned to supportinguniversalisation and implementation. Civilsociety participation on this front continuesto be critical, as multi-stakeholderpartnerships are a vital means of sharingknowledge and expertise, as well asbuilding collective capacity within decision-making infrastructure such as the annualConferences of States Parties (CSPs).

Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) had tofight for access to CSP proceedings,campaigning successfully for somemeetings to be “open” instead of“closed” and building support amongStates willing to champion suchprovisions. However, current levels ofparticipation in ATT fora should not betaken for granted, given the concerningsigns that the hard-won access could bewithdrawn in the future.

Monitoring ATT implementationnecessitates critical analysis ofgovernment behaviour – not blanketsupport. This means confrontational work

at times and already, some States, notablyEuropean exporters, have started to pushfor a more closed process and attemptedto undermine the input of CSOs.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was asupporter of civil society participationthroughout the ATT negotiation process.By identifying himself as a vocal championfor inclusivity, the incoming Secretary-General can build on the work of hispredecessors and be influential in ensuringthat ATT procedures remain accessible.

Other UN arms control processes, such asthe Conference on Disarmament, havebeen more restrictive, and, by limiting civilsociety participation, combined withdecision-making processes that rarelyallow progress, have consequentlysuffered a lack of legitimacy, publicinterest and support.

The Secretary-General should make apositive case for better access to alldisarmament and arms control processesand fora. This should include recognition ofthe role played by international coalitionsin bringing together civil society groupsacross the world, especially the globalSouth, and advocacy for their continuedsupport in representing their members atUN and other international meetings.

Civil society, with its wide-rangingexpertise and its representation of diverseglobal views, is critical in ensuringaccountability, rigour and transparencyacross international arms controlprocesses. Strong norms must beestablished to safeguard such inclusionthat, ultimately, will lead to more robustarms control mechanisms providingmeaningful protection of civiliansworldwide.

Civil Society Remains Vitalto Success of Arms ControlProcesses Robert Perkins is a researcher with the Control Arms Secretariat,working on the Arms Trade Treaty Monitor project. He has workedacross a range of arms control issues, including explosive weapons inpopulated areas.

“The Secretary-General should make apositive case for better access to alldisarmament and arms controlprocesses and fora.”

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As an international human rightsorganisation working to protect the rightsof women and girls, Equality Now firstlaunched its campaign for a womanSecretary-General about 20 years ago.Concerned that in the 70-year history ofthe UN there still has not been a womanSecretary-General, the organisationrenewed this campaign in 2015, noting themany qualified female candidates whocould be appointed to the position and theneed for a transparent selection process.

The campaign was also grounded on theunderrepresentation of women within theUN itself. For the past decade, accordingto UN Women, only 24.6 per cent of thehighest positions at the organisation havebeen filled by women. Yet in 1995, at theUN Fourth World Conference on Womenin Beijing, 189 governments called for thedevelopment of “mechanisms to nominatewomen candidates for appointment tosenior posts in the United Nations”. Theyear 2000 was set as the target date for“overall gender equality, particularly at theProfessional level and above”.

While we were disappointed that a womanwas not selected in the end, weencourage the incoming Secretary-Generalto become an unswerving supporter of afeminist agenda, including by ensuringgender parity among staff and prioritisingthe prevention of violence anddiscrimination against women and girlsaround the world. Along these lines, civilsociety organisations released a statementproposing minimum steps for Mr Guterres’first 100 days towards what we thinkshould be his feminist agenda.

At its heart, the declaration makes the casefor gender parity across the UN system,calling on the Secretary-General to:

• commit to establishing gender parityamong his staff and across theSecretariat, i.e. in the SeniorManagement Group, in the members ofthe Policy Committee and in themembers of the Chief Executives Boardfor Coordination (CEB).

• fulfil the commitment made at the WorldHumanitarian Summit in May 2016 bythe UN Deputy Secretary-General toramp up action on gender equality byincreasing the percentage of women atall levels in the United Nations, seekingto surpass 40 percent by 2020 andachieve 50 percent by 2030.

• put in place a plan, timeline, budget andaccountability mechanism for all seniorleaders for achieving gender parity insenior appointments across the entireUN.

The statement further highlights the needto strengthen financing for gender equalityand improved coordination through UNWomen, ensuring that the agency isinformed and engaged in decision-makingprocesses across the UN’s activities.

As the Secretary-General takes office, theneed for UN leadership on women’s rightsis a must. This includes the improvementsneeded to incorporate better civil societyvoices working on gender issues, includingin the highest policy forums. But, at a timewhen the political pushback againstwomen’s rights will only increase,supporting women’s civil society voicesalso includes the UN showing leadershipwith Member States and theircommitments to champion these issueswithin the Sustainable Development Goalsand existing UN human rights frameworks.

Gender Considerations forthe New Secretary-GeneralMelina Lito is a Program Officer with Equality Now. She is aninternational human rights lawyer with experience in internationalsecurity and justice and US immigration law.


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Right: UN Women ExecutiveDirector Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka meets UN WomenCountry and Regional Staff inCairo, February 2015. P

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The Role of Civil Society in Enhancing thePeacebuilding Commission Rachel Madenyika is a UN Representative at the Quaker United NationsOffice in New York, where she leads the work on the prevention ofviolent conflict.

The new Secretary-General is entering theUN at a time that requires crucial decisionsfor peacebuilding. The UN has respondedto the increase in conflict and insecuritythroughout the world by acknowledgingthat peacebuilding needs to take placebefore, during and after the outbreak ofconflict. Such a shift within the UNtowards ‘sustaining peace’ recognises theprimacy of politics while also stressing anapproach that links security, developmentand human rights. This new concept,together with the peace mandate of the2030 Agenda, could help reorient the UN’sefforts to sustain peace and accomplishthe spirit of the UN Charter.

To do this, the Peacebuilding Commission(PBC) needs to be strengthened. The PBCwas initially set up in 2005 to be morecreative and flexible compared to, forinstance, the Security Council. It wasintended as a body to propose and adviseon integrated peacebuilding approaches,and push forward action to reconstructsocieties and their institutions in theaftermath of conflict. While acknowledgingthat civil society is not monolithic, theUN’s peacebuilding work would benefitfrom more systematic engagement with

civil society. Indeed, the inclusion ofdiverse sources of civil society expertise iscrucial to ensuring the success of therenewed UN peacebuilding approach.

First, to effectively fulfil its mission, thePBC must measure its success through itsimpact on the people it seeks to support,and involve civil society. This requiresstrategies and practices both atheadquarters and at the country level,engaging with a range of perspectives. Onthis front, the PBC should establish astrategy to create feedback loops for civilsociety monitoring and assessments of itsactivities both in New York and in country.

Second, civil society can play a crucial rolein the design, implementation andevaluation of peacebuilding projectsfunded by the UN Peacebuilding Fund. Tofacilitate this, the Peacebuilding Fundshould continue the trend that began in2016 with the broadening of fundingeligibility to incorporate the direct fundingof international NGOs. This initiativeshould be expanded by increasing thecapacity of local organisations to apply forsuch funding, since they are best placed toguide the UN on the local needs andcontext.

Below: Security CouncilConsiders Report ofPeacebuilding Commission682536” with the caption:“Security Council ConsidersReport of PeacebuildingCommission, New York, June2016.

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Persons with Disabilities andthe United Nations System Vladimir Cuk is the Executive Director of the International DisabilityAlliance (IDA), Primary Representative of the Disability StakeholderGroup and Co-Chair of the Major Groups and Other Stakeholders High-Level Political Forum Coordination Mechanism.


Third, the most powerful lever of the PBCis its convening power. The PBC canenhance its effectiveness by includingdifferent perspectives, approaches andfeedback from the communities that aremost impacted by its work. The PBC couldbe more systematic in including civilsociety in its activities, and provide greatertransparency to its work by providing morenotice of PBC meeting dates and making

preparatory documents available to civilsociety.

It is a rare occasion that a major UNmember state body has the opportunity toreinvent itself. It is clear that strengthenedand institutionalised engagement with civilsociety will be required as the PBC takesthe next steps towards implementing thenew ‘sustaining peace’ agenda. Bysupporting more effective civil societyinvolvement, the new Secretary-Generalcan enhance the role of the PBC as a placewhere longer-term national and regionalstrategies for sustainable peace arearticulated, refined, implemented andsupported.

Persons with disabilities comprise anestimated 15 percent of the world’spopulation and are overrepresentedamong those living in absolute poverty.Encountering pervasive exclusion insociety, persons with disabilities arefurther impacted by multiple forms ofdiscrimination. Such exclusion andinequality, however, has invigorated theglobal disability rights movement to worktirelessly to address such discrimination.

One transformative achievement for thedisability community has been the UnitedNations Convention on the Rights ofPersons with Disabilities (CRPD), adoptedin 2006. The CRPD represented afundamental shift in how persons withdisabilities were regarded, moving awayfrom a medical view of disability towards ahuman rights approach. Uniquely providingboth a human rights and developmentframework, the CRPD redefined what itmeans to build truly inclusive andsustainable societies, laying thegroundwork for future advocacy. As aresult, the 2030 Agenda, which has placedthe principle of “leave no one behind” atits core, explicitly included for the first timethe rights of persons with disabilities as acentral issue in development. With suchexplicit references, the 2030 Agenda, like

the CRPD, has opened the doors for ourequal participation and has enabled us tostart addressing the institutional, attitudinaland legal barriers that have inhibited our fullparticipation within human rights anddevelopment dialogues.

The participation and contribution ofpersons with disabilities in both the UNCRPD and the 2030 Agenda haveexemplified the impact and positivecontribution that civil society can makewithin the UN system. But this was notwithout its challenges. While MajorGroups had been recognised since 1992,additional space for civil society actorswas limited until 2012, when additionalstakeholders were recognised by MemberStates. Throughout this time, and sincethen, persons with disabilities have beenone of the leading stakeholder groupsadvocating for the increased inclusion ofall civil society, not only themselves.

Persons with disabilities created anorganised, representative and coordinatedplatform: the Stakeholder Group ofPersons with Disabilities, which aims touphold the CRPD in the UN’s sustainabledevelopment processes.

While more space has been granted tocivil society, it requires the consistent

“It is a rare occasion that a major UNmember state body has the opportunityto reinvent itself.”

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advocacy of stakeholders to maintain it.For persons with disabilities, our inclusionand meaningful engagement is mandatedwithin CRPD Article 4.3, which requiresStates Parties to closely consult withpersons with disabilities in thedevelopment and implementation ofpolicies, and in decision-making processesthat impact their lives. We continue toadvocate for this principle to be appliedacross the entire UN system byrecommending the following:

• Increasing the accessibility of the UN atall levels for persons with disabilities,including by means of closed captioningand International Sign, as well asaccessible communication systems andmaterials.

• Considering disability in any UNprocess that requires gender andgeographical balance.

• Increasing the systematic inclusion ofthe rights and participation of personswith disabilities in the UN DevelopmentSystem’s operational activities at alllevels.

• Mandating Resident Coordinators toappoint disability focal points in each UNCountry Team.

• Investing by the UN DevelopmentSystem in the capacity of NationalStatistical Offices to collect anddisaggregate data by disability.

• Increasing the support, funding andvisibility of the United NationsPartnership to Promote the Rights ofPersons with Disability (UNPRPD).

The space for collaboration with the UNand larger civil society networkscontributed to the success that personswith disabilities have achieved. Personswith disabilities hope that the leadership ofthe Secretary-General of the UnitedNations will guarantee and further openspace for the effective and meaningfulparticipation of all civil society in today’schallenging era.

“Our inclusion and meaningfulengagement is mandated withinCRPD Article 4.3, which requiresStates Parties to closely consult with persons with disabilities.”

Above: Afghanis gather tocelebrate the International Dayof Persons with Disabilities,Kabul, Afghanistan, December2010.

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When the General Assembly took thehistoric decision to hold the first everhearings with all candidates for the post ofSecretary-General, many observersexpected a dreadful exchange ofprefabricated slogans. Instead, thehearings, which started in April 2016,became widely regarded as perhaps themost honest, open exchange about therole of the Secretary-General and the UNthat the world body had ever seen.

A significant contribution to the selectionprocess’ increased transparency was thequestions put by NGOs from all over theworld to all candidates. The President ofthe General Assembly had agreed to makethese interventions a short, yetconstituent, part of all candidate hearings.NGO participation was facilitated by a civilsociety committee balanced in respect togender and region – organised by the UNNon-Governmental Liaison Service (NGLS)– that made pre-selections from amongthe over 1,500 civil society questionssubmitted from 100 countries. As a result,during their dialogue with GeneralAssembly members, each candidate waspresented with two to three civil societyquestions by pre-recorded video message.

Civil society participation in the selectionprocess has established an importantprecedent. But there is more to be learnedfrom this exercise:

First, regarding the selection of the civilsociety questions, the crowd wisdom ofthe 22 civil society committee membersmanaged to balance representativenessand the selection of pertinent content. Yetthis also came at the price of a certainlevel of self-censorship: Future debateswould profit if civil society concentrated onraising issues that Member States wouldbe unlikely to cover or do not dare toaddress themselves.

Second, technology can help inovercoming distances, language barriers

and other divisions, but only to a point.The pre-recorded video messages helpedbring voices to the UN with relatively littleeffort. But these questions, which had tobe submitted and filmed beforehand, tookaway the spontaneity and they are nosubstitute for a genuine debate on thespot. The UN should further explore themany novel methods of interaction thatcommunication technologies present. Forinstance, the UK Mission collected civilsociety questions via Twitter and thenaddressed some of them to thecandidates. This could be done by the UNSecretariat as the conference convener inmany of its future UN hearings, as well asin anticipated hearings with Secretary-General candidates.

Third, the standing of NGLS within the UNsystem has always been indicative of thegeneral state of the UN-civil societyrelationship. Civil society participation inthe Secretary-General hearings profitedfrom the experience that NGLS had builtup funnelling civil society participation intothe deliberations for the 2030 Agenda.Nevertheless, NGLS’s financial andinstitutional standing remains in peril andcould deteriorate further without strongsupport from Member States and theSecretariat.

While constantly pushing the envelopeand moving towards constructiveinvolvement for the greater global good, inthe end CSOs cannot do it alone. The pro-active role of the President of the 70thGeneral Assembly, Mogens Lykketoft,proved crucial in creating transparentcandidate hearings with civil society input.Secretary-General Guterres could seizeupon the worldwide interest in hisselection that global civil society took andinvite them to become an integral part ofbroad coalitions to reinvigorate the UN andtackle the huge challenges ahead.

Historic Civil SocietyParticipation in GeneralAssembly Hearings with UNSecretary-General CandidatesVolker Lehmann is a Senior Policy Analyst with the New York office ofthe Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. He focuses on the UN’s role ininternational peace and security and on UN reform. He was a memberof the NGLS civil society committee.


“The hearingsbecamewidelyregarded asperhaps themost honest,openexchangeabout the roleof theSecretary-General andthe UN thatthe worldbody had everseen.”

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In 2016, for the first time there weresignificant improvements in thetransparency of the process to select a newUN Secretary-General and the WHODirector-General. This has not always beenthe case when filling leadership posts in theUN, as demonstrated by the largely closed-door nomination and selection process forthe post of UN High Commissioner forRefugees (UNHCR).

After a closed process in 2000 with noofficial opportunity for input from NGOs, in2005, efforts to take a new approach toappointing the High Commissioner werewelcomed by civil society. The UNSecretariat sent letters to governmentsand notably also some NGOs, asking fornominations with a list of criteria to guidenominations.

The International Council of VoluntaryAgencies (ICVA) sought to complement theprocess from the outside by writing toknown candidates with a questionnaire,giving candidates a platform to presenttheir vision for the role, with the resultspublished online. While this initiative washampered by the absence of a public list ofcandidates, meaning that civil society couldonly engage those announced by theirgovernments or heard of informally, thesuccess of the exercise made it clear thatthere was a willingness from candidates toparticipate in such an initiative.

During the run-up to the 2015 UNHCRappointment, a similar ICVA initiative metwith an additional obstacle – a lack ofsupport from the UN Secretariat, whojustified their opposition on the grounds ofconfidentiality, citing a 2012 GeneralAssembly resolution containing guidanceon the appointment of senior managers.This development was unfortunate giventhat the majority of known candidateswere keen to participate – indicating acomfort with, and expectation of, suchpublic discourse.

Appointment of UNHCRChief and Other SeniorRoles Could Learn fromRecent UNSG Process Nan Buzard is Executive Director of the International Council ofVoluntary Agencies. She also has experience with the InternationalFederation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, American RedCross, UNHCR and various other non-government and private sectororganisations.


As the UN seeks to reassert its values andvalue, the demand for trust andtransparency is at an all-time high. Peoplearound the world are seeking what is realand true. A transparent process does notcontradict the role of management or of aselection committee but rather providesimportant additional scrutiny andcredibility.

In a world with new threats and increasinginstability, the UN needs the best leadersand managers. Initiating clear, opendiscussion between candidates and thepublic they serve will contribute to theidentification and hiring of the mostqualified candidates.

The 2017 creation of the Secretary-General’s Executive Committee, alongwith its commitment to maximising theimpact on public perception andgenerating coherence across the UNsystem, provides a strong basis forfurthering the regularisation of transparentrecruitment processes for senior positions.

Senior UN appointment processes including the UNHCR wouldbenefit from the sort of gains in transparency and civil societyparticipation witnessed in the recent Secretary-General and WHODirector-General appointment processes. Recommendations forUN action on this front should include the following:

• Candidacies for USG, DSG and Secretary-General positionsshould be made public along with a requirement that candidatesprovide written and oral vision statements

• Candidates should be encouraged to answer questions posedby relevant civil society organisations with knowledge of theissues related to the agency/position

• Qualified candidates should be able to demonstrate theiradvocacy for and their work with civil society on issues ofconcern

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CSOs have become indispensable acrossthe UN’s broad spectrum of work – fromservice provision to contributing to majorpolicy initiatives like the SDGs. Yet,deeper engagement with civil society willbe essential if the UN is to deliver itsambitious agenda at a time of gravechallenges to the international system. AsSecretary-General Guterres said in late2016: cooperation between the UN andcivil society must become “a key elementin solving global problems”.

The UN needs to take action on twofronts to realise this vision. Firstly, theremust be concerted support to help protectcivic space outside the UN. According toUN Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai, thepast decade has seen an “unprecedentedwave of repressive laws and practicessweep across the world” designed tosilence those who dare to speak out. Civicspace is shrinking fast and, given theimportance placed on civil society by theUN, the Organisation must do all it can tochampion the protection, reopening andexpansion of civic space.

Action from the Secretary-General canhelp here. By identifying himself early onas an energetic advocate for the rights ofcivil society actors, and advocating greatersupport for the Office of the UnitedNations High Commissioner for HumanRights’ work on this front, Mr Guterrescan promote good practice and stimulatedebate between Member States on thisissue.

Secondly, improvements within the UNare needed in order to better coordinatecivil society cooperation across anorganisation whose size, complexity andremit has increased dramatically since itsfounding. Progress here has beenthwarted in the past more by a lack of

political and financial will than a lack ofideas.

Reform initiatives such as the 2003-04Panel of Eminent Persons on UN-CivilSociety Relations have yielded somecompelling proposals that remainunimplemented, including those relatingto coordination across the UN system.For over 40 years, this role has largelyfallen to the UN Non-GovernmentalLiaison Service (NGLS) – a voluntarilyfunded, inter-agency programme thatoperates on a shoestring, currentlyadministered by the Secretariat of the UNConference on Trade and Development(UNCTAD) in Geneva.

Despite punching above its weight, for abody like NGLS to play an effectivesystem-wide coordination role wouldrequire an appropriate and secure fundingstream as well as improved institutionalstanding.

The Secretary-General’s new-lookExecutive Office, with its emphasis oncoherence and coordination, offers apromising opportunity to reinvigoratereform here. An early priority should bethe appointment or designation of asenior official as a system-wide focalpoint to lead a partnerships unit with theinstitutional status and funding necessaryto mainstream civil society engagementacross the UN. The System Wide ActionPlans on Youth and Gender could providesome inspiration on this front.

Sustained support from Member Stateswill be critical in order to make suchreforms effective. Part of this will beidentifying and working with those stateswilling to lead the march for civil society –not least to ensure that institutionalarrangements have the necessary financialbacking.

By supporting this agenda, and driving itforward where possible, Secretary-General Guterres could put the UN in abetter position to capitalise on the uniqueenergy and expertise that civil society hasto offer in pursuit of our sharedaspirations for a peaceful future.

Supporting Civil Societyacross the UN System andBeyond Ben Donaldson is Head of Campaigns at the United Nations Association– UK, a co-founder of the 1 for 7 Billion campaign. His focus is on UNreform and UK-UN relations.


“Deeper engagement with civil societywill be essential if the UN is to deliver itsambitious agenda at a time of gravechallenges to the international system.”

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Next page: The People’sClimate March in New Yorkattracted nearly 400,000people making it the largestclimate march in history,September 2014.

“We invite the Secretary-General to shine a light on this agenda anddrive it forwards where possible,and encourage Member States and decision-makers to support Mr Guterres in his work”

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This publication was co-compiled by four founding members of the 1 for 7 Billioncampaign: the United Nations Association – UK, the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung NewYork Office, CIVICUS and Avaaz. The recommendations contained within thispublication are those of the individual contributors, rather than 1 for 7 Billion or thepublication's co-compilers. They reflect key principles for UN cooperation with civilsociety which we support.

The publication was co-edited by Ben Donaldson, Volker Lehmann and YvonneTerlingen. For more information please contact [email protected].

February 2017

Cover photo: Participants arrive in Mexico City for the 62nd annual UN Department of Public Information(DPI) and Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) Conference. The meeting focused on disarmamenttook place in September 2009. Photo: UN Photo/Evan Schneider

UNA-UKNew York Office

Documents

Strengthening civil society engagement with the …civicus.org › images › CivilSocietyEngagementWithUN.pdfStrengthening civil society engagement with the United Nations 5 Introduction