United Nations Civil Society Conference
in Support of the Summit of the Future
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UNON - Nairobi, Kenya
9 & 10 May 2024
“Civil society organizations were present in San Francisco at the founding of the United Nations and have been an integral part of the United Nations ecosystem from the outset. As part of our consultations, civil society has called for better engagement with the United Nations system. I believe that it is essential for the United Nations to listen to, coordinate with and engage with civil society.”
Our Common Agenda. Chapter V. paragraph 121
BACKGROUND ON THE DEPARTMENT OF GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS AND CIVIL SOCIETY
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The importance of working with civil society as an integral part of the United Nations communications activities was recognized when the Office of Public Information (now Department of Global Communications – DGC) was established in 1946 and instructed in UN General Assembly Resolution 13 (I) to: “…actively assist and encourage national information services, educational institutions and other governmental and nongovernmental organizations of all kinds interested in spreading information about the United Nations. For this and other purposes, it should operate a fully equipped reference service, brief or supply lecturers, and make available its publications, documentary films, film strips, posters, and other exhibits for use by these agencies and organizations.”
Subsequently, the Economic and Social Council, by Resolution 1297 (XLIV) of 27 May 1968, called on the department to associate NGOs, bearing in mind the letter and spirit of its resolution 1296 (XLIV) of 23 May 1968, which stated that an NGO “…shall undertake to support the work of the United Nations and to promote knowledge of its principles and activities, in accordance with its own aims and purposes and the nature and scope of its competence and activities”.
Over the past seven and a half decades, Member States have continued to recognize the benefits of civil society participation locally, regionally, and internationally as expressed in the 2005 World Summit Outcome Document – “to enhance the contribution of non-governmental organizations, civil society, the private sector, and other stakeholders in national development efforts, as well as in the promotion of the global partnership for development.” The document also indicates that “We welcome the positive contributions of the private sector and civil society, including non-governmental organizations, in the promotion and implementation of development and human rights programmes and stress the importance of their continued engagement with Governments, the United Nations and other international organizations in these key areas. We welcome the dialogue between those organizations and Member States, as reflected in the first informal interactive hearings of the General Assembly with representatives of non-governmental organizations, civil society, and the private sector.”
Based on this history and mandate, the United Nations Department of Global Communications has had a long and vibrant history of engagement with civil society organizations (CSOs). Since 2018 the NonGovernmental Liaison Service (NGLS) is part of the Civil Society & Advocacy Section in the Outreach Division of the Department of Global Communications, at the request of the Executive Office of the Secretary-General. With this move, NGLS was strengthened in its objective of ensuring that stakeholders and other non-state actors not in consultative status with ECOSOC could actively participate and engage at high-level meetings, conferences, and summits, convened by the General Assembly or the Executive Office of the Secretary-General.
In addition to facilitating access to the United Nations premises and attendance of meetings and events, organizing briefings, and sharing information about the work and role of the Organization, the collaboration included the holding of sixty-eight civil society conferences. These conferences created opportunities for direct engagement with civil society representatives and outcome documents that were subsequently shared with Member States through the United Nations Security Council, the Office of the President of the General Assembly, and with the Secretary-General of the United Nations and relevant agencies and departments of the UN System.
The first 60 conferences were held in New York. In an effort to reach civil society organizations and representatives in other parts of the world and to avoid interruptions caused by the Capital Master Plan at UN HQ, the 61st Conference was held in Paris in 2008, the 62nd Conference was held in Mexico City in 2009 and the 63rd Conference was held in Melbourne in 2010.
Among other achievements, the outcome document of the conference on disarmament that took place in Mexico City in 2009, was introduced by the government of Mexico as an official document to the Security Council, given its relevance to the work of the Council ().
The 64th Conference was held in Bonn, Germany in 2011 under the title “Sustainable Societies; Responsive Citizens” and contributed to civil society’s preparations for and contributions to the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20). The Final Declaration from the 2011 conference was integrated in the Rio+20 conference, incorporating over 1000 individual contributions that were used as one of the first civil society inputs to the 20-year review meeting of the UN Conference on the Environment and Development (Rio+20) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in June 2012.
With the conclusion of the Capital Master Plan, the 65th UN DPI/ NGO Conference was held in New York on 27 to 29 August 2014 under the title “2015 and Beyond: Our Action Agenda”, and brought together the vast diversity of civil society representation, constituencies, and campaigns ahead of the 69th Session of the UN General Assembly and UNFCCC COP 20 in Lima. The deliberations and conference advocated for a truly ambitious Post-2015 Development Agenda and was widely shared with UN System, Member States and civil society and other stakeholders.
Subsequent conferences were held in Gyeongju, Republic of Korea on 30 May – 1 June 2016 (Education for Global Citizenship), at UN Headquarters on 22 – 23 August 2018 (We the Peoples: Together Finding Global Solutions for Global Problems), and the 68th Conference was held in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America on 26 – 28 August 2019 (Link) under the title “Building Inclusive and Sustainable Cities and Communities”.
WHY A CIVIL SOCIETY CONFERENCE IN 2024
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It is undeniable that civil society continues to play a fundamental role in shaping a future that, today more than ever, needs multilateral approaches to ensure an inclusive, sustainable, and safe society for all. Since 1947, sixty-eight civil society conferences have resulted in successful outcomes as a result of 2 previous interactions with CSOs. Holding this conference will aim to provide preliminary discussions and data ahead of the Summit of the Future.
The Summit represents an opportunity to strategize the path forward for the United Nations and the global community, to advance the work marked by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and build a world where no one is left behind. Civil society is an essential partner in a global endeavor that must come up with solutions and approaches from all sectors in society, in a spirit of collaboration and true multilateralism.
The United Nations Civil Society Conference would provide an opportunity for multi-stakeholder engagement ahead of the Summit of the Future and a venue for civil society to participate in the preparations process. The conference would provide civil society with an additional platform to speak out and share ideas that could contribute to the Pact for the Future negotiations, in line with SDG17 and the Common Agenda's vision of networked multilateralism.
As was the case in past conferences, the May 2024 conference is expected to produce tangible outcomes and a positive contribution to the deliberations ahead of the Summit of the Future. These could include policy recommendations, action plans, initiatives, collaborations, or even projects that address specific challenges or issues relevant to the Summit of the Future's objectives. Additionally, several engagement and contributing opportunities are planned to take place after the Nairobi conference, in close collaboration and coordination with the Executive Office of the SecretaryGeneral, that include a townhall to discuss the path forward to ensure a stronger engagement of civil society in the leadup to the Summit, as well as briefings for United Nations Information Centers, Resident Coordinator’s offices and Country Teams, and special sessions with the civil society focal points across the UN System, as part of the recommendations of the Secretary-General in his report Our Common Agenda.
It is precisely in the Our Common Agenda (OCA) report, that United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres asked Member States to give serious consideration to greater engagement with civil society and expanding the civic space at the United Nations “in keeping our quest for a multilateralism that is more networked, inclusive, and effective. (OCA, paragraph 130). The report, intended as a wake-up call to speed implementation of the SDGs and provide recommendations to address strategic gaps in global governance arrangements, called for a Summit of the Future to forge a new global consensus on multilateral solutions to current and future problems.
HOST COUNTRY AND THEME
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As previously indicated, the Department of Global Communications has convened, in collaboration with civil society organizations, sixty-eight civil society conferences since 1947. Until 2007, the conference took place at UNHQ in New York. In 2008 the conference was hosted in Paris, France. Since then, the conference has been held in Mexico City, Mexico (2009); Melbourne, Australia (2010); Bonn, Germany (2011); Gyeongju, Republic of Korea (2016); and Salt Lake City, Utah, USA (2019).
In considering the host country and theme for the next civil society conference, the Department of Global Communications recalled the request of Member States to focus on Africa, as expressed in ECOSOC Resolution 1297 (XLIV). DGC also thought it important to build on the work carried out in 3 implementing the recommendations of Our Common Agenda, particularly DGC s leadership in fulfilling recommendation #64 - identifying civil society focal points across the UN System to ?create the space necessary for civil society actors to contribute at the country and global levels, and within United Nations meetings, networks, processes, and arrangements. (OCA paragraph 121). Conversations between the Director of the Outreach Division in DGC and the UNON Director General led to a preliminary agreement that the United Nations Office at Nairobi would be the ideal place to convene the conference.
As part of this work on Our Common Agenda, and understanding the potential for engagement ahead of the Summit of the Future to be convened by the Secretary-General in September 2024, it was decided that, in collaboration with the Summit co-facilitators, the next UN Civil Society Conference would support preparations for the Summit.
The Summit of the Future is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to enhance cooperation on critical challenges and address gaps in global governance, reaffirm existing commitments including to the Sustainable Development Goals and the United Nations Charter, and move towards a reinvigorated multilateral system that is better positioned to positively impact people's lives.
For DGC, it is a continuation of our role in mobilizing non-state actors and other stakeholders in support of the Summit of the Future, with the goals of building on the momentum of Agenda 2030, contributing to the global conversation to shape the future of our planet, and engaging key actors responsible for the implementation of these global efforts at the grassroots level. NGLS will lead the accreditation (May-June) of organizations per the GA Resolution and as requested by OPGA and EOSG. This includes creation and dissemination of products announcing the Summit and the opportunity for civil society, private sector, and academic institutions, as well as other relevant organizations. NGLS will guide these entities through the process to enable their engagement in the intergovernmental event.
Following the circulation and approval of the list of these organizations, NGLS will open registration (July-August) of the representatives from accredited organizations to the Summit of the Future. This call, aimed at inclusive and meaningful participation, will advance their participation in the Summit (Sept) as well as the call for expressions of interest in speaking opportunities outlined in the Summit modalities, specifically for stakeholder participation in the interactive dialogues occurring alongside the Plenary.