Much still remains to be negotiated and agreed by United Nations Member States on the post-2015 sustainable development goals, the framework slated to succeed the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) when they expire in 2015. But as debates continue to unfold in earnest on the structure and substance of each possible goal area – the ‘what’ of the framework – pressing yet unresolved questions remain on ‘how’ the framework will be implemented. More specifically, how will the post-2015 goals be effectively implemented and monitored to achieve results? At the heart of this question is the responsibility of all actors to honour post-2015 commitments.
The importance of ensuring effective accountability for the post-2015 framework has been widely acknowledged by a range of actors. There is strong consensus amongst national and international civil society and UN stakeholders alike that monitoring and accountability must be given greater priority than it was for the MDGs. In fact, the lack of strong accountability mechanisms is seen as one of the main shortfalls of the MDGs and may have contributed to limiting their impact (SG/SM/12789, 2010). It is therefore important that lessons are learnt and measures taken to avoid this with a new global framework.
However, both the ‘who’ and the ‘how’ for post2015 accountability processes are yet to be defined – accountability to whom, by whom, for what, and how? What should this look like in practice at all levels from the local to the international? How can we ensure that modalities for stakeholder engagement in monitoring and accountability mechanisms are in line with human rights principles and standards?
This report argues that young people – young women and young men aged 15 to 24 years – should be an integral part of any post-2015 accountability framework. Young people make up one fifth of the world’s population, the majority of whom live in developing countries (UNDESA, 2014). This ‘youth bulge’ will be the key beneficiaries of, and partners in, the new global framework, which will shape the future for these 1 billion young people. Ensuring that their rights are met in this formative stage of life is fundamental to the achievement of sustainable development in all countries. Recognising this, young people have been particularly vocal and responsive in the post-2015 consultations and fora, both on- and offline from national to international levels.
This paper argues that young people should be included as key stakeholders, not only within the goals and targets of the framework, but also in post-2015 monitoring and accountability mechanisms. It takes as its foundation the understanding that fulfilling young people’s right to participate is not only an end in-and-of-itself, but it can also make an important contribution to the relevance and effectiveness of the implementation of the post-2015 framework.