The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at its core was adopted by member States of the United Nations in September 2015.
As part of its follow-up and review mechanisms, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development encourages member States to “conduct regular and inclusive reviews of progress at the national and sub-national levels, which are country-led and country-driven" (paragraph 79). These national reviews (VNR) are expected to serve as a basis for the regular reviews by the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF). As stipulated in paragraph 84 of the 2030 Agenda, regular reviews by the HLPF are to be voluntary, state-led, undertaken by both developed and developing countries, and involve multiple stakeholders, including persons with disabilities and their representative organizations.
In order to make the voluntary national reviews (VNRs) disability-inclusive, the Working Group on the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2013–2022, at its Fifth Session (Bangkok, 21 and 22 February 2019), recommended as follows:
• Working Group members should coordinate with the Sustainable Development Goals focal points in their Governments to leverage data collected for the Incheon Strategy indicators in their reporting on Sustainable Development Goals progress, paying due attention to issues concerning children, women and girls, older persons and persons with disabilities.
• Working Group members should include representative organizations of persons with disabilities in the preparation of the voluntary national review reports.
• The secretariat and the South Asian Disability Forum are requested to inform the voluntary national review consultation workshop during the Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development, to be held in Bangkok from 27 to 29 March 2019, of the urgent need to mainstream disability perspectives in the voluntary national review.
• The Government of Pakistan is requested to share its experience on disability-inclusive voluntary national review with Working Group members.
Accordingly, the secretariat took the step to inform the Regional Workshop on Preparation for the 2019 Voluntary National Reviews (Bangkok, 26 MAR 2019) of the urgent need to mainstream disability perspectives in the VNRs.
At the subsequent Sixth Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (Bangkok, 27-29 March 2019), representatives from major groups and other stakeholders emphasized the importance of justice, inclusive planning and rights for the most marginalized groups, including indigenous peoples; girls and women, especially rural women; farmers; workers; fisherfolk; urban poor; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex persons; people living with HIV/AIDS; people living in conflict; older persons; youth; migrants; persons with disabilities; Dalits; and those discriminated based on work and descent. Member States preparing for the voluntary national review noted that their preparation for and consolidation of the review reports were aligned with national and subregional strategies, giving priority to the development concerns of their most vulnerable groups such as older persons, women, persons with disabilities and indigenous groups.
The full report of the Sixth Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development can be accessed here.