Institutional
Arrangements: Decisions of the GA and CSD
Commission
on Sustainable Development, 13th session
New York, 11-22
April 2005
E. International Institutional Arrangements for
Monitoring and Follow-Up of CSD-13 Decisions on water, sanitation and human
settlements
(y) Reaffirm that the Commission for Sustainable
Development should continue to be the high-level commission responsible for
sustainable development within the United Nations system;
(z) Reaffirm further the mandate of the Commission on
Sustainable Development as stipulated in Agenda 21, General Assembly
resolution 47/191 of 22 December 1992 and the
Johannesburg Plan of Implementation as well as ECOSOC resolution 2003/61 on
the future programme, organization and methods of work of the CSD;
(aa) Support, strengthen and implement voluntary
monitoring, reporting and assessment of the thematic areas of water,
sanitation and human settlements at the national and regional levels and
through existing mechanisms at the global level to keep track of progress in
achieving sustainable development, bearing in mind the specific needs of
developing countries, by the following measures:
(i) Improving data collection at all levels;
(ii) Enhancing the comparability of data at the regional
and global level;
(iii) Facilitating the contribution of major groups to
national reporting activities;
(iv) Requesting the CSD Secretariat to update the policy
options and practical measures contained in the Chairman’s IPM Summary, on a
regular basis to make it a living document, and to develop web-based tools to
disseminate information on implementation and best practices;
(bb) Encourage Member States to continue to work on the development and
application of indicators for sustainable development at the national level,
including integration of gender aspects, on a voluntary basis, in line with
their national conditions and priorities, and in this regard invites the
international community to support the efforts of developing countries;
Commission
on Sustainable Development, 11th session
New York, 28 April -9 May 2003
The Commission on Sustainable
Development concluded its first meeting since the Johannesburg Summit on 9 May
2003 with an agreement on its future programme and organization of work for
the next 15 years.
The Commission will now function on
the basis of two-year "Implementation Cycles", including
Review and Policy Years. The Review Year will evaluate progress made in
implementing sustainable development goals and identifying obstacles and
constraints, while the Policy Year will decide on measures to speed up
implementation and mobilize action to overcome these obstacles and
constraints. In every cycle, a number of cross-cutting issues will be
addressed, such as poverty eradication, changing unsustainable patterns of
production and consumption, health, education and sustainable development in a
globalizing world, as well as means of implementation.
CSD-11 also took a range of decisions
on other practical issues relating to its future programme and methods of
work. These included: enhancing the role of regional and sub-regional inputs
to the CSD process; making reporting mechanisms more effective; promoting
greater collaboration and cohesion between sustainable development activities
undertaken by the UN system and other international institutions; and
strengthening the involvement of major groups in the activities of the CSD.
Johannesburg
Plan of Implementation, Chapter XI. Institutional
framework for sustainable development
137. An effective institutional framework for sustainable development at
all levels is key to the full implementation of Agenda 21, the follow-up to
the outcomes of the World Summit on Sustainable Development and meeting
emerging sustainable development challenges. Measures aimed at strengthening
such a framework should build on the provisions of Agenda 21, as well as the
Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21 of 1997, and the
principles of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development and should
promote the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals,
including those contained in the Millennium Declaration, taking into account
the Monterrey Consensus and relevant outcomes of other major United Nations
conferences and international agreements since 1992. It should be responsive
to the needs of all countries, taking into account the specific needs of
developing countries including the means of implementation. It should lead to
the strengthening of international bodies and organizations dealing with
sustainable development, while respecting their existing mandates, as well as
to the strengthening of relevant regional, national and local institutions.
138. Good governance is essential for sustainable development. Sound
economic policies, solid democratic institutions responsive to the needs of
the people and improved infrastructure are the basis for sustained economic
growth, poverty eradication, and employment creation. Freedom, peace and
security, domestic stability, respect for human rights, including the right to
development, and the rule of law, gender equality, market-oriented policies,
and an overall commitment to just and democratic societies are also essential
and mutually reinforcing.
A. Objectives
139. Measures to strengthen institutional arrangements on sustainable
development, at all levels, should be taken within the framework of Agenda 21,45
build on developments since the United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development and lead to the achievement of, inter alia, the following
objectives:
(a) Strengthening commitments to sustainable development;
(b) Integration of the economic, social and environmental dimensions of
sustainable development in a balanced manner;
(c) Strengthening of the implementation of Agenda 21, including through
the mobilization of financial and technological resources, as well as
capacity-building programmes, particularly for developing countries;
(d) Strengthening coherence, coordination and monitoring;
(e) Promoting the rule of law and strengthening of governmental
institutions;
(f) Increasing effectiveness and efficiency through limiting overlap and
duplication of activities of international organizations, within and outside
the United Nations system, based on their mandates and comparative
advantages;
(g) Enhancing participation and effective involvement of civil society
and other relevant stakeholders in the implementation of Agenda 21, as well
as promoting transparency and broad public participation;
(h) Strengthening capacities for sustainable development at all levels,
including the local level, in particular those of developing countries;
(i) Strengthening international cooperation aimed at reinforcing the
implementation of Agenda 21 and the outcomes of the Summit.
B. Strengthening the
institutional framework for sustainable development at the international level
140. The international community should:
(a) Enhance the integration of sustainable development goals as reflected
in Agenda 21 and support for implementation of Agenda 21 and the outcomes of
the Summit into the policies, work programmes and operational guidelines of
relevant United Nations agencies, programmes and funds, the Global
Environment Facility and international financial and trade institutions,
within their mandates, while stressing that their activities should take
full account of national programmes and priorities, particularly those of
developing countries, as well as, where appropriate, countries with
economies in transition, to achieve sustainable development;
(b) Strengthen collaboration within and between the United Nations
system, international financial institutions, the Global Environment
Facility and the World Trade Organization, utilizing the United Nations
System Chief Executives Board for Coordination, the United Nations
Development Group, the Environment Management Group and other inter-agency
coordinating bodies. Strengthened inter-agency collaboration should be
pursued in all relevant contexts, with special emphasis on the operational
level and involving partnership arrangements on specific issues, to support,
in particular, the efforts of developing countries in implementing Agenda
21;
(c) Strengthen and better integrate the three dimensions of sustainable
development policies and programmes and promote the full integration of
sustainable development objectives into programmes and policies of bodies
that have a primary focus on social issues. In particular, the social
dimension of sustainable development should be strengthened, inter alia, by
emphasizing follow-up to the outcomes of the World Summit for Social
Development and its five-year review, and taking into account their reports,
and by support to social protection systems;
(d) Fully implement the outcomes of the decision on international
environmental governance adopted by the Governing Council of the United
Nations Environment Programme at its seventh special session46
and invite the General Assembly at its fifty-seventh session to consider the
important but complex issue of establishing universal membership for the
Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum;
(e) Engage actively and constructively in ensuring the timely completion
of the negotiations on a comprehensive United Nations convention against
corruption, including the question of repatriation of funds illicitly
acquired to countries of origin;
(f) Promote corporate responsibility and accountability and the exchange
of best practices in the context of sustainable development, including, as
appropriate, through multi-stakeholder dialogue, such as through the
Commission on Sustainable Development, and other initiatives;
(g) Take concrete action to implement the Monterrey Consensus at all
levels.
141. Good governance at the international level is fundamental for
achieving sustainable development. In order to ensure a dynamic and enabling
international economic environment, it is important to promote global economic
governance through addressing the international finance, trade, technology and
investment patterns that have an impact on the development prospects of
developing countries. To this effect, the international community should take
all necessary and appropriate measures, including ensuring support for
structural and macroeconomic reform, a comprehensive solution to the external
debt problem and increasing market access for developing countries. Efforts to
reform the international financial architecture need to be sustained with
greater transparency and the effective participation of developing countries
in decision-making processes. A universal, rules-based, open,
non-discriminatory and equitable multilateral trading system, as well as
meaningful trade liberalization, can substantially stimulate development
worldwide, benefiting countries at all stages of development.
142. A vibrant and effective United Nations system is fundamental to the
promotion of international cooperation for sustainable development and to a
global economic system that works for all. To this effect, a firm commitment
to the ideals of the United Nations, the principles of international law and
those enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, as well as to
strengthening the United Nations system and other multilateral institutions
and promoting the improvement of their operations, is essential. States should
also fulfil their commitment to negotiate and finalize as soon as possible a
United Nations convention against corruption in all its aspects, including the
question of repatriation of funds illicitly acquired to countries of origin
and also to promoting stronger cooperation to eliminate money laundering.
C. Role of the General Assembly
143. The General Assembly of the United Nations should adopt sustainable
development as a key element of the overarching framework for United Nations
activities, particularly for achieving the internationally agreed development
goals, including those contained in the Millennium Declaration, and should
give overall political direction to the implementation of Agenda 21 and its
review.
D. Role of the Economic and Social
Council
144. Pursuant to the relevant provisions of the Charter of the United Nations,
the provisions of Agenda 21 regarding the Economic and Social Council and
General Assembly resolutions 48/162 and 50/227, which reaffirmed the Council
as the central mechanism for the coordination of the United Nations system and
its specialized agencies and supervision of subsidiary bodies, in particular
its functional commissions, and to promote the implementation of Agenda 21 by
strengthening system-wide coordination, the Council should:
(a) Increase its role in overseeing system-wide coordination and the
balanced integration of economic, social and environmental aspects of United
Nations policies and programmes aimed at promoting sustainable development;
(b) Organize periodic consideration of sustainable development themes in
regard to the implementation of Agenda 21, including the means of
implementation. Recommendations in regard to such themes could be made by
the Commission on Sustainable Development;
(c) Make full use of its high-level, coordination, operational activities
and the general segments to effectively take into account all relevant
aspects of the work of the United Nations on sustainable development. In
this context, the Council should encourage the active participation of major
groups in its high-level segment and the work of its relevant functional
commissions, in accordance with the respective rules of procedure;
(d) Promote greater coordination, complementarity, effectiveness and
efficiency of activities of its functional commissions and other subsidiary
bodies that are relevant to the implementation of Agenda 21;
(e) Terminate the work of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
for Development and transfer its work to the Commission on Sustainable
Development;
(f) Ensure that there is a close link between the role of the Council in
the follow-up to the Summit and its role in the follow-up to the Monterrey
Consensus, in a sustained and coordinated manner. To that end, the Council
should explore ways to develop arrangements relating to its meetings with
the Bretton Woods institutions and the World Trade Organization, as set out
in the Monterrey Consensus;
(g) Intensify its efforts to ensure that gender mainstreaming is an
integral part of its activities concerning the coordinated implementation of
Agenda 21.
E. Role and function of the
Commission on Sustainable Development
145. The Commission on Sustainable Development should continue to be the
high-level commission on sustainable development within the United Nations
system and serve as a forum for consideration of issues related to integration
of the three dimensions of sustainable development. Although the role,
functions and mandate of the Commission as set out in relevant parts of Agenda
21 and adopted in General Assembly resolution 47/191 continue to be relevant,
the Commission needs to be strengthened, taking into account the role of
relevant institutions and organizations. An enhanced role of the Commission
should include reviewing and monitoring progress in the implementation of
Agenda 21 and fostering coherence of implementation, initiatives and
partnerships.
146. Within that context, the Commission should place more emphasis on
actions that enable implementation at all levels, including promoting and
facilitating partnerships involving Governments, international organizations
and relevant stakeholders for the implementation of Agenda 21.
147. The Commission should:
(a) Review and evaluate progress and promote further implementation of
Agenda 21;
(b) Focus on the cross-sectoral aspects of specific sectoral issues and
provide a forum for better integration of policies, including through
interaction among Ministers dealing with the various dimensions and sectors
of sustainable development through the high-level segments;
(c) Address new challenges and opportunities related to the
implementation of Agenda 21;
(d) Focus on actions related to implementation of Agenda 21, limiting
negotiations in the sessions of the Commission to every two years;
(e) Limit the number of themes addressed in each session.
148. In relation to its role in facilitating implementation, the Commission
should emphasize the following:
(a) Review progress and promote the further implementation of Agenda 21.
In this context, the Commission should identify constraints on
implementation and make recommendations to overcome those constraints;
(b) Serve as a focal point for the discussion of partnerships that
promote sustainable development, including sharing lessons learned, progress
made and best practices;
(c) Review issues related to financial assistance and transfer of
technology for sustainable development, as well as capacity-building, while
making full use of existing information. In this regard, the Commission on
Sustainable Development could give consideration to more effective use of
national reports and regional experience and to this end make appropriate
recommendations;
(d) Provide a forum for analysis and exchange of experience on measures
that assist sustainable development planning, decision-making and the
implementation of sustainable development strategies. In this regard, the
Commission could give consideration to more effective use of national and
regional reports;
(e) Take into account significant legal developments in the field of
sustainable development, with due regard to the role of relevant
intergovernmental bodies in promoting the implementation of Agenda 21
relating to international legal instruments and mechanisms.
149. With regard to the practical modalities and programme of work of the
Commission, specific decisions on those issues should be taken by the
Commission at its next session, when the Commission's thematic work programme
will be elaborated. In particular, the following issues should be considered:
(a) Giving a balanced consideration to implementation of all of the
mandates of the Commission contained in General Assembly resolution 47/191;
(b) Continuing to provide for more direct and substantive involvement of
international organizations and major groups in the work of the Commission;
(c) Give greater consideration to the scientific contributions to
sustainable development through, for example, drawing on the scientific
community and encouraging national, regional and international scientific
networks to be involved in the Commission;
(d) Furthering the contribution of educators to sustainable development,
including, where appropriate, in the activities of the Commission;
(e) The scheduling and duration of intersessional meetings.
150. Undertake further measures to promote best practices and lessons
learned in sustainable development, and in addition promote the use of
contemporary methods of data collection and dissemination, including broader
use of information technologies.
F. Role of international
institutions
151. Stress the need for international institutions both within and outside
the United Nations system, including international financial institutions, the
World Trade Organization and the Global Environment Facility, to enhance,
within their mandates, their cooperative efforts to:
(a) Promote effective and collective support to the implementation of Agenda
21 at all levels;
(b) Enhance the effectiveness and coordination of international institutions
to implement Agenda 21, the outcomes of the World Summit on Sustainable
Development, relevant sustainable development aspects of the Millennium
Declaration, the Monterrey Consensus and the outcome of the Fourth Ministerial
Meeting of the World Trade Organization, held in Doha in November 2001.
152. Request the Secretary-General of the United Nations, utilizing the
United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination, including
through informal collaborative efforts, to further promote system-wide
inter-agency cooperation and coordination on sustainable development, to take
appropriate measures to facilitate exchange of information, and to continue to
keep the Economic and Social Council and the Commission informed of actions
being taken to implement Agenda 21.
153. Significantly strengthen support for the capacity-building
programmes of the United Nations Development Programme for sustainable
development, building on the experience gained from the Capacity 21
programme, as important mechanisms for supporting local and national
development capacity-building efforts, in particular in developing
countries.
154. Strengthen cooperation between the United Nations Environment
Programme and other United Nations bodies and specialized agencies, the
Bretton Woods institutions and the World Trade Organization, within their
mandates.
155. The United Nations Environment Programme, the United Nations Centre
for Human Settlements, the United Nations Development Programme and the United
Nations Conference on Trade and Development, within their mandates, should
strengthen their contribution to sustainable development programmes and the
implementation of Agenda 21 at all levels, particularly in the area of
promoting capacity-building.
156. To promote effective implementation of Agenda 21 at the international
level, the following should also be undertaken:
(a) Streamline the international sustainable development meeting calendar
and, as appropriate, reduce the number of meetings, the length of meetings and
the amount of time spent on negotiated outcomes in favour of more time spent
on practical matters related to implementation;
(b) Encourage partnership initiatives for implementation by all relevant
actors to support the outcome of the World Summit on Sustainable Development.
In this context, further development of partnerships and partnership follow-up
should take note of the preparatory work for the Summit;
(c) Make full use of developments in the field of information and
communication technologies.
157. Strengthening of the international institutional framework for
sustainable development is an evolutionary process. It is necessary to keep
relevant arrangements under review; identify gaps; eliminate duplication of
functions; and continue to strive for greater integration, efficiency and
coordination of the economic, social and environmental dimensions of
sustainable development aiming at the implementation of Agenda 21.
G. Strengthening institutional
arrangements for sustainable development at the regional level
158. Implementation of Agenda 21 and the outcomes of the Summit should be
effectively pursued at the regional and subregional levels, through the
regional commissions and other regional and subregional institutions and
bodies.
159. Intraregional coordination and cooperation on sustainable development
should be improved among the regional commissions, United Nations Funds,
programmes and agencies, regional development banks and other regional and
subregional institutions and bodies. This should include, as appropriate,
support for development, enhancement and implementation of agreed regional
sustainable development strategies and action plans, reflecting national and
regional priorities.
160. In particular, taking into account relevant provisions of Agenda 21,
the regional commissions, in collaboration with other regional and subregional
bodies, should:
(a) Promote the integration of the three dimensions of sustainable
development into their work in a balanced way, including through
implementation of Agenda 21. To this end, the regional commissions should
enhance their capacity through internal action and be provided, as
appropriate, with external support;
(b) Facilitate and promote a balanced integration of the economic, social
and environmental dimensions of sustainable development into the work of
regional, subregional and other bodies, for example by facilitating and
strengthening the exchange of experiences, including national experience,
best practices, case studies and partnership experience related to the
implementation of Agenda 21;
(c) Assist in the mobilization of technical and financial assistance, and
facilitate the provision of adequate financing for the implementation of
regionally and subregionally agreed sustainable development programmes and
projects, including addressing the objective of poverty eradication;
(d) Continue to promote multi-stakeholder participation and encourage
partnerships to support the implementation of Agenda 21 at the regional and
subregional levels.
161. Regionally and subregionally agreed sustainable development
initiatives and programmes, such as the New Partnership for Africa's
Development (NEPAD) and the interregional aspects of the globally agreed
Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing
States, should be supported.
H. Strengthening institutional
frameworks for sustainable development at the national level
162. States should:
(a) Continue to promote coherent and coordinated approaches to
institutional frameworks for sustainable development at all national levels,
including through, as appropriate, the establishment or strengthening of
existing authorities and mechanisms necessary for policy-making,
coordination and implementation and enforcement of laws;
(b) Take immediate steps to make progress in the formulation and
elaboration of national strategies for sustainable development and begin
their implementation by 2005. To this end, as appropriate, strategies should
be supported through international cooperation, taking into account the
special needs of developing countries, in particular the least developed
countries. Such strategies, which, where applicable, could be formulated as
poverty reduction strategies that integrate economic, social and
environmental aspects of sustainable development, should be pursued in
accordance with each country's national priorities.
163. Each country has the primary responsibility for its own sustainable
development, and the role of national policies and development strategies
cannot be overemphasized. All countries should promote sustainable development
at the national level by, inter alia, enacting and enforcing clear and
effective laws that support sustainable development. All countries should
strengthen governmental institutions, including by providing necessary
infrastructure and by promoting transparency, accountability and fair
administrative and judicial institutions.
164. All countries should also promote public participation, including
through measures that provide access to information regarding legislation,
regulations, activities, policies and programmes. They should also foster full
public participation in sustainable development policy formulation and
implementation. Women should be able to participate fully and equally in
policy formulation and decision-making.
165. Further promote the establishment or enhancement of sustainable
development councils and/or coordination structures at the national level,
including at the local level, in order to provide a high-level focus on
sustainable development policies. In that context, multi-stakeholder
participation should be promoted.
166. Support efforts by all countries, particularly developing countries, as
well as countries with economies in transition, to enhance national
institutional arrangements for sustainable development, including at the local
level. That could include promoting cross-sectoral approaches in the
formulation of strategies and plans for sustainable development, such as,
where applicable, poverty reduction strategies, aid coordination, encouraging
participatory approaches and enhancing policy analysis, management capacity
and implementation capacity, including mainstreaming a gender perspective in
all those activities.
167. Enhance the role and capacity of local authorities as well as
stakeholders in implementing Agenda 21 and the outcomes of the Summit and in
strengthening the continuing support for local Agenda 21 programmes and
associated initiatives and partnerships and encourage, in particular,
partnerships among and between local authorities and other levels of
government and stakeholders to advance sustainable development as called for
in, inter alia, the Habitat Agenda.47
I. Participation of major groups
168. Enhance partnerships between governmental and non-governmental actors,
including all major groups, as well as volunteer groups, on programmes and
activities for the achievement of sustainable development at all levels.
169. Acknowledge the consideration being given to the possible relationship
between environment and human rights, including the right to development, with
full and transparent participation of Member States of the United Nations and
observer States.
170. Promote and support youth participation in programmes and activities
relating to sustainable development through, for example, supporting local
youth councils or their equivalent, and by encouraging their establishment
where they do not exist.
_____________________
45 References in the present chapter
to Agenda 21 are deemed to include Agenda 21, the Programme
for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and the outcomes of the Summit.
46 UNEP/GCSS.VII/6, annex I.
47 A/CONF.165/14, chap. I, resolution 1,
annex II
|
