Ambassadors talk on Advancing Peace, Justice and Inclusion through SDG 16

UNDP invites you to the event “Ambassadors talk on Advancing Peace, Justice and Inclusion through SDG 16 ” for the Norwegian launch of UNs Global Progress Report on SDG 16!  

As we witness growing distrust in public institutions, a fractured multilateral system and rising inequalities, the international commitment to bring peace, justice and inclusion for all has never been more urgent.  Charting more concerted pathways in meeting this SDG 16 is vital.  When the sustainable development goals were formulated 8 years ago, Member States and relevant stakeholders committed to achieving more inclusive, just and peaceful societies (SDG 16). However, there was a lack of quality data and statistics to effectively monitor and measure progress and provide the evidence base for better policies.   

The 1st SDG 16 Global Progress Report, produced by the Global Policy Centre for Governance in 2023 in collaboration with other UN agencies, highlighted sobering stagnation or regression in areas such as violence reduction, access to justice, inclusive governance and peaceful societies. It also drew attention to the worsening situation for women across several global indicators – there are more women victims of sexual violence, feel less safe around the area they live, and remain underrepresented at higher levels of decision-making. The 2nd Global SDG 16 Progress Report will be launched at Arendalsuka and provides up-to-date and rigorous evidence of advancements made and areas requiring immediate attention. The report highlights the acute threat posed by organized crime to peace and development and that the world is not getting safer. Despite concerted global efforts, our progress toward creating a safer world remains dangerously inadequate. It also shows the long way to go to bridging the gap in access to justice. Achieving representative and inclusive institutions remains a distant goal on a global scale. However, there are some bright spots. Over the past decades, there has been a notable global effort by countries towards achieving greater diversity in public service and a gradual increase in young members of parliament globally.  

Ambassadors will discuss the significance of these trends in their own countries and regions but also the ramifications for a more inclusive, peaceful, just world for their regions.