On Wednesday, 4 March, the Equal Rights Coalition Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the 2030 Agenda held a meeting with the aim of strengthening the inclusion of LGBTIQ+ rights in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
There was notable participation by the states of Spain, Australia, Canada, Italy, and Serbia, as well as civil society organisations from Nicaragua, Peru, Mexico, Argentina, Belize, and Ecuador. Currently, the group is made up of seven states, three multilateral organisations, and 41 civil society organisations.
During the meeting, the group presented a work plan structured around two main areas. The first, ‘Progress and non-discrimination,’ contemplates the explicit inclusion of LGBTIQ+ people in the generation of evidence, the strengthening of accountability with a differential approach, and the construction of specific indicators to measure concrete progress. The second pillar, ‘Inclusive societies,’ proposes strengthening coordination with civil society and promoting more just and peaceful societies. It was also specified that humanitarian issues will be addressed in a new specific space within the Coalition.
Among the activities agreed upon are:
- holding monthly meetings on the first Wednesday of each month;
- following up on member states’ commitments to the SDGs;
- recruiting new members to the group; and
- monitoring and dissemination of state reports related to these goals, for which The World Bank expressed its willingness to support the preparation of reports for states that request it.
The following tasks were identified as pending: strengthening the commitment to data production and use; expanding the influence of the ERC in multilateral spaces linked to the SDGs; bringing the work of the group closer to the Core Groups of States at the United Nations; and developing a strategic document to influence the preparation of Voluntary National Reviews and the Universal Periodic Review on LGBTIQ+ rights. Finally, the group proposed holding webinars on reports published by international organisations and influencing the agendas of international SDG forums to be held in Chile and the United States.