38/28 Supporting effective and inclusive implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development through effective, coherent and coordinated technical cooperation and capacity-building - Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

GE.18-08837(E)



Human Rights Council Thirty-eighth session

18 June–6 July 2018

Agenda items 2 and 10

Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner

for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the

High Commissioner and the Secretary-General

Technical assistance and capacity-building

Supporting effective and inclusive implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development through effective, coherent and coordinated technical cooperation and capacity-building

Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for

Human Rights*

Summary

The present report is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 36/28,

in which the Council requested the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for

Human Rights (OHCHR) to prepare a report on how United Nations human rights bodies

and mechanisms and United Nations country teams and agencies can, through effective,

coherent and coordinated technical assistance and capacity-building in the promotion and

protection of human rights, support States in the realization of the 2030 Agenda for

Sustainable Development. The report contains information on worldwide practices and

experiences. It is based on research undertaken by OHCHR on national and regional

experiences in technical cooperation and information received from States and from United

Nations agencies and programmes.

* The present report was submitted after the deadline in order to reflect the most recent information.

United Nations A/HRC/38/28

I. Introduction and methodology

1. The present report is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 36/28,

in which the Council requested OHCHR to prepare a report on how United Nations human

rights bodies and mechanisms, including the Human Rights Council, the universal periodic

review, the special procedures and the treaty bodies, and United Nations country teams and

agencies can, through effective, coherent and coordinated technical assistance and capacity-

building in the promotion and protection of human rights, support States in the realization

of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In the resolution, the Council requests

OHCHR to highlight practical steps and concrete examples that seek to promote policy

synergy and coherence, use of technology and innovation, the strengthening of the capacity

of national statistical offices and data systems related to human rights where applicable, and

ways to enhance national implementation, reporting and follow-up, taking into account the

different constraints and needs of States.

2. The present report will serve as a basis for the discussions at the annual thematic

panel on technical cooperation, at the Council’s thirty-eighth session, which will focus on

enhancing human rights technical cooperation and capacity-building to contribute to the

effective and inclusive implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

3. In preparing the present report, OHCHR gathered information on different

experiences, including methodologies used and lessons learned. OHCHR is grateful for the

inputs received from Member States and United Nations entities in the preparation of the

report. Those contributions — together with information provided by United Nations

country teams, from United Nations human rights bodies and mechanisms1 and from across

OHCHR and its field presences — constitute the basis for the report. Realization of the

2030 Agenda has only recently been set in motion, but as Member States, supported by the

United Nations system, move forward with national implementation of the Sustainable

Development Goals, good practices are emerging. In the present report, which is designed

to frame the panel’s discussions and facilitate exchanges of views and experiences,

OHCHR focuses on concrete examples of how human rights technical cooperation and

capacity-building support the realization of the 2030 Agenda and ensure a rights-based

implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals that integrates the principle of

leaving no one behind. Azerbaijan, Gabon, Greece, Italy, Qatar, the Russian Federation and

Thailand submitted information relevant for the preparation of the report.

4. In the report is built on examples of how technical cooperation and capacity-

building programmes are supporting States in practical terms in their realization of the 2030

Agenda. Throughout the report, information can be found about the use of guidance tools,

and there are examples of efforts to promote synergies and policy coherence between the

implementation efforts at the national level and the follow-up to the recommendations of

international human rights mechanisms, and examples of methodological support with

regard to indicators and data collection in the planning, monitoring, evaluation and follow-

up phases.

5. In the report, OHCHR endeavours to identify what can be considered as good

practice, and examines opportunities, challenges, gaps, and possible priority areas of focus.

Given the limitations on the length of documents, the report cannot be exhaustive. Rather, it

is focused on a number of concrete examples that can serve as a basis for the sharing of

experiences among States during the panel discussions.

II. Operational framework and policy

6. The 2030 Agenda, which was adopted by consensus by all Member States, is firmly

grounded in the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

1 Including the Human Rights Council, the universal periodic review, special procedures and the

human rights treaty bodies.

the international human rights treaties, and other instruments, including the Declaration on

the Right to Development (see para. 10), and is to be implemented in a manner that is

consistent with the obligations of States under international law (see para. 18). In the 2030

Agenda, the responsibilities of all States “to respect, protect and promote human rights and

fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction of any kind as to race, colour, sex,

language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth,

disability or other status” are emphasized (see para. 19). The pledge to leave no one behind

places the human rights principles of equality and non-discrimination at the heart of the

2030 Agenda. Although the Sustainable Development Goals and their targets are not

framed explicitly in the language of human rights, many targets reflect key elements of the

corresponding human rights standards. For example, the Sustainable Development Goals

address the availability, accessibility, affordability and quality of education, health care,

water and other services — in line with key elements of economic, social and cultural

rights.

7. To support Member States in their implementation of the 2030 Agenda, the United

Nations Development Group (now referred to as the United Nations Sustainable

Development Group) has prioritized areas of mainstreaming, acceleration and policy

support, framing the United Nations development system’s support for United Nations

country teams for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda through the relevant United

Nations Development Assistance Framework. Updated guidance relating to the United

Nations Development Assistance Framework, and companion pieces, were published in

2017, reaffirming the assistance framework documents as one of the main vehicles of

implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, positioning the United Nations to

provide quality support to Member States in their aspiration to achieve the 2030 Agenda,

and reinforcing human rights as one of the main programming principles used in the

preparation of these documents.

8. Leaving no one behind is at the core of the 2030 Agenda, and it unifies

programming and advocacy efforts across all United Nations agendas. It is underpinned by

three other programming principles: (a) human rights, gender equality and women’s

empowerment; (b) sustainability and resilience; and (c) accountability.

9. These principles are grounded in the norms and standards that the United Nations is

tasked with upholding and promoting, and that inform all phases of United Nations

programming at the country level. They are the foundation for integrated programming in

response to national priorities and plans.

10. At the system-wide level, the Shared Framework for Action on Combating

Inequalities and Discrimination has been elaborated and published by the United Nations

System Chief Executives Board for Coordination. 2 In that report, the Chief Executives

Board reaffirms the commitment of the United Nations to human rights and puts the

imperative of combating inequalities and discrimination at the centre of United Nations

strategic frameworks and policy guidance to support implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

A practical guide for operationalizing the principle of leaving no one behind is also being

produced by the United Nations Sustainable Development Group.

III. Experiences and practices in technical cooperation and capacity-building in support of State efforts for the realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

A. Support for policy coherence

11. Enhancing policy coherence is key to support provided to Member States to achieve

effective implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and to meet the broad

cross-cutting objectives of the 2030 Agenda, including leaving no one behind. A broad

2 CEB/2016/6/Add.1.

array of policies across different sectors and dimensions of sustainable development will be

needed in order to deliver the Goals, and given the integrated nature of the Goals and the

interdependencies among the targets, it will be necessary to analyse interactions among

different policies, promote mutually reinforcing policy actions, exploit synergies whenever

possible, and ensure alignment of the multitude of policy documents and action plans that

this will engender. Policy coherence for sustainable development is therefore about

processes — from policy design to the monitoring and reviewing of progress made towards

achieving the agreed objectives. The United Nations system is providing support and

technical cooperation to Member States in these processes.

12. Human rights are placed at the core of the 2030 Agenda by the emphasis in the

Agenda on the responsibilities of all States “to respect, protect and promote human rights

and fundamental freedoms for all” and the stipulation that the Agenda is to be implemented

in a manner that is consistent with the “obligations of States under international law”.

Meeting these imperatives means that implementation of the Sustainable Development

Goals should be consistent with human rights. The ratification of core human rights treaties

carries an obligation to report periodically to the treaty bodies, which make

recommendations. Together with the recommendations made in the universal periodic

review process and by special procedures, data generated through engagement with all

those human rights mechanisms can help to guide implementation of the Goals and

constitute important evidence for implementation and follow-up processes. Moreover, the

recommendations made by the human rights mechanisms can give substance to the analysis

of national progress under each target within the Goals, including with regard to ensuring

that no one is being left behind. Underpinned by legally binding human rights treaties,

human rights norms can ensure accountability in the implementation of the Goals. A human

rights-based approach can lead to a deepened understanding of policy coherence for

development, by addressing the obstacles to the realization of rights which impede progress

towards sustainable development and the eradication of poverty.

13. In the 2030 Agenda, Member States are encouraged to conduct regular and inclusive

reviews of progress at the national and subnational levels, which are country-led and

country-driven, and to build as far as possible on existing national and local mechanisms

and processes, ensuring broad multi-stakeholder participation. Reviews should be based on

high-quality data that is accessible, timely, reliable and disaggregated. Many States are

adopting national strategies and national review mechanisms or processes for

implementation and follow-up in respect of the Sustainable Development Goals, including

as regards how to consult with other stakeholders in these processes. At the same time,

many States have already established some form of national mechanism for monitoring and

reporting and follow up on human rights treaties. The United Nations system, including

OHCHR, is providing Member States, at their request, with technical cooperation and

capacity-building in order to build synergies and linkages between these different follow-up

and reporting mechanisms, procedures and processes for the Sustainable Development

Goals and human rights. Drawing on existing human rights mechanisms will ease the

reporting burden of States, ensure meaningful participation by rights holders, and enhance

coherence, efficiency and accountability. Examples of national mechanisms for monitoring,

reporting and follow-up show that clustering hundreds of recommendations emanating from

the human rights mechanisms by theme often narrows the scope of those recommendations

down to 10–20 core priorities, and allows States to frame their national action plans

accordingly. Expanding or enhancing this clustering around the Sustainable Development

Goals could help to support reporting on the Goals by building on complementarities, and

also streamline the process of domestic implementation. Recent experiences (such as those

of Ecuador and Paraguay) illustrate these synergies.

14. The guidance provided by the United Nations Development Group has led to the

development of a new generation of United Nations Development Assistance Frameworks,

which reflects evolving responsiveness to the 2030 Agenda and support for Member States

on implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. According to an internal review,

all United Nations Development Assistance Frameworks signed as at September 2017

responded directly to the call for United Nations support for the 2030 Agenda, and to

integrate human rights into planning. Through OHCHR-led efforts to mainstream human

rights into United Nations work at the global and country levels, United Nations country

teams have increased their capacity to apply a human rights-based approach, which can

help to support Member States in building synergies at the country level. United Nations

Development Assistance Frameworks and other United Nations planning documents, in a

number of countries, have integrated human rights concepts and mainstreamed

recommendations issued by the international human rights mechanisms, and have

highlighted linkages between the Sustainable Development Goals and human rights. The

OHCHR Regional Office for South America has developed a matrix linking the 17

Sustainable Development Goals and their targets and indicators with the recommendations

issued as part of the universal periodic review process and by special procedures and treaty

bodies, in relation to the countries of the region. As a result, the 2017–2021 United Nations

Development Assistance Frameworks of Brazil and Peru incorporate a matrix that matches

each strategic outcome of the framework to relevant Sustainable Development Goals and

recommendations from the human rights mechanisms.

15. The United Nations can support enhanced policy coherence by assisting with

aligning strategies and plans, ensuring that nobody is left behind, and identifying synergies

between human rights obligations and Sustainable Development Goals. As experience from

several countries shows, OHCHR capacity-building activities, coupled with advocacy by

United Nations country teams, can result in the human rights mechanisms’

recommendations being mainstreamed in national action plans and can inform the process

of implementing and reporting on the Goals. Uzbekistan integrated the recommendation of

the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on enhancing

women’s participation in public affairs in its State Programme for the Implementation of

the Development Action Strategy for 2017–2021. On the basis of the same Committee’s

recommendations, Tajikistan incorporated prevention of violence against women and girls

as a sub-priority of its National Development Strategy for 2016–2030, and developed an

action plan on implementing the Committee’s recommendations. The National Action Plan

on gender parity for 2018–2020, of Kyrgyzstan, incorporates the Committee’s concluding

observations, the agreed conclusions of the Commission on the Status of Women, and the

Sustainable Development Goals and provides for a national monitoring mechanism and the

participatory development of sectoral and regional gender action plans.

16. The 2030 Agenda also provides new avenues for cooperation among States. The

growing interest of Member States in South-South and triangular cooperation opens doors

to new and innovative opportunities to further the rights-based implementation of the

Sustainable Development Goals. Noteworthy in this respect is the “Sufficiency Economy

Philosophy for the Sustainable Development Goals Partnership” initiative, of King

Bhumibol of Thailand. There are currently such partnership projects with 20 countries in

the Asia-Pacific region and in Africa, such as Fiji, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste and

Tonga, and Benin, Lesotho, Mozambique and Senegal, which promote the implementation

of the Sustainable Development Goals and of human rights in areas including the right to

food, the right to health, the right to development. The Ministerial Declaration of the Group

of 77 and China in 2016 recognized the value of the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy as a

practical approach that could support the implementation and achievement of the

Sustainable Development Goals — underscored by its successful application in various

development projects in a number of Group of 77 countries.

B. Operationalizing the implementation of the Sustainable Development

Goals and human rights through information management

17. The Universal Human Rights Index, which is a database of recommendations from

all United Nations human rights mechanisms, now also has links to the Sustainable

Development Goals. In April 2018, as part of an agreement between OHCHR and the

Danish Institute for Human Rights, a database was launched linking human rights

recommendations to the Sustainable Development Goals. Still a pilot project at this stage, it

links the more than 50,000 recommendations made during the first and second cycles of the

universal periodic review to specific Sustainable Development Goals. The database allows

States to address these recommendations as part of their implementation of the Sustainable

Development Goals, thereby giving them integrated and efficient approaches to achieving

the Goals and human rights.

18. In Paraguay, the online database for following up on the recommendations of the

international human rights mechanisms (known by the acronym SIMORE) was expanded in

December 2017 to link human rights recommendations and the Sustainable Development

Goals and their targets. Additionally, SIMORE Plus has a new feature called OSC-Plus,

through which civil society organizations can monitor the follow-up to each

recommendation and can provide comments and observations — creating the first dialogue

space between the various stakeholders involved in the implementation and monitoring of

recommendations and of the Sustainable Development Goals. SIMORE Plus has given rise

to South-South cooperation, with the system being replicated in a number of countries in

the region (namely Bolivia (Plurinational State of), the Dominican Republic, Ecuador,

Guatemala and Honduras) with the cooperation of the Government of Paraguay and with

technical advice provided by OHCHR. In the Dominican Republic, a similar tool was

launched to facilitate monitoring of the implementation of recommendations, and the

elaboration of periodic reports to the United Nations human rights mechanisms, and to

allow civil society and human rights organizations to monitor the actions undertaken by the

Government to comply with its international obligations. The system is the first of its kind

in the Caribbean.

19. To highlight how the Sustainable Development Goals and the Convention on the

Rights of the Child complement each other, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)

has developed a comprehensive mapping of the Sustainable Development Goals and their

targets against the articles of the Convention.3 The mapping shows the multiple levels of

connection between the two, and how the implementation of the Goals will support the

implementation of child rights. It shows the more obvious links in areas such as health,

education and violence, but also shows that all of the Goals are relevant for children and

their rights, not only the Goals that specifically refer to children. OHCHR has also

produced a mapping of the interlinkages between the Sustainable Development Goals and

the human rights treaties, and has mapped all the targets within the Sustainable

Development Goals against relevant Universal Declaration of Human Rights provisions;

this is being used to assist Member States in identifying how to ensure that the Goals are

implemented in line with Member States’ human rights obligations.

C. Use of human rights indicators and data disaggregation

20. The use of human rights indicators, as well as of disaggregated data, helps unpack

key overarching principles, such as leaving no one behind, and helps measure progress in

the achievement of the Goals. OHCHR has developed guidance tools to support

policymakers, statisticians and data specialists in government agencies, national human

rights institutions, equality bodies and civil society organizations in order to ensure that

respect, protection and fulfilment of human rights materialize in the implementation of the

2030 Agenda.

21. The Inter-Agency and Expert Group on Sustainable Development Goal Indicators,

created under the auspices of the United Nations Statistical Commission, has identified a

robust set of 232 unique indicators to monitor progress in achieving the Sustainable

Development Goals. The indicators were agreed by the Statistical Commission in March

2017 and approved by the General Assembly in July 2017.4 In response to a request by the

Inter-Agency and Expert Group, OHCHR developed a compendium that links the levels of

disaggregation to the grounds of discrimination that are prohibited under international

human rights law. The compendium lists the different population groups or characteristics,

the relevant universally accepted legal standards, and recommendations from the

international human rights mechanisms.5

3 Available at www.unicef.org/agenda2030/files/SDG-CRC_mapping_FINAL.pdf.

4 See General Assembly resolution 71/313.

5 Available at www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Indicators/Pages/HRIndicatorsIndex.aspx.

22. The majority of the Sustainable Development Goal indicators adopted by the

General Assembly are directly related to indicators that measure the realization of human

rights. Overall, a quarter of them explicitly or implicitly address gender equality. The

interconnection between human rights and sustainable development has been increasingly

recognized in the development of Sustainable Development Goal indicators, including for

data disaggregation. Work has advanced in relation to compiling and reporting on

Sustainable Development Goal indicators, for which OHCHR has been tasked by Member

States as the custodian agency, under the Statistical Commission — including indicators on

the prevalence of discrimination, violence against human rights defenders, the existence of

national human rights institutions, and conflict-related deaths (not included in traditional

homicide statistics). OHCHR, in collaboration with the Danish Institute for Human Rights,

has been able to make progress on developing a conceptual and methodological framework

for indicator 4.7.1, and more specifically to measure that indicator’s human rights education

component.

23. In November 2017, the Inter-Agency and Expert Group on Sustainable Development

Goal Indicators approved the request by OHCHR to reclassify the indicator on violence

against human rights defenders from tier III to tier II, thus endorsing the proposed

methodology. 6 OHCHR had undertaken a first data-collection exercise that drew on

multiple sources (e.g. special procedures, treaty bodies, OHCHR press statements and press

releases, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

database on killings of journalists, the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Inter-

American Commission on Human Rights and non-governmental organizations (NGOs))

and applied a minimum set of data of and verification requirements (e.g. the victim’s name,

status, sex and age; the date and place of the incident(s); the motivation; and information

about the perpetrator).

24. In Mexico, OHCHR supported the development of indicators in the areas of

economic, social and cultural rights and justice, and the enhancement of indicators to bring

them into line with the Sustainable Development Goals, at the federal level (with the

National Institute of Statistics and Geography) and in the states of Coahuila, Oaxaca,

Mexico City and Querétaro, and to measure the achievement of a broad set of rights. In

Paraguay, human rights indicators based on OHCHR methodology were developed for

persons with disabilities, linked to the national action plan on the rights of persons with

disabilities adopted in 2015 and to the Sustainable Development Goals. With the technical

support of OHCHR, the Secretariat for Social Action designed a set of human rights

indicators related to poverty, to economic, social and cultural rights and to social

protection, which were linked to the social programmes implemented by the Secretariat. In

the Plurinational State of Bolivia, OHCHR supported 70 focal points in line with ministries

and experts from the National Institute of Statistics to review and consolidate the human

rights indicators developed to date and to coordinate actions necessary to make use of them.

In Guatemala, OHCHR organized training workshops on a human rights-based approach to

the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and human rights indicators, and

worked to support and bring together different stakeholders in the areas of the Sustainable

Development Goals and human rights in common efforts to strengthen measurement and

implementation of the Goals. In Kazakhstan, the United Nations Development Programme

(UNDP) adapted OHCHR-developed human rights indicators in six areas (right not to be

subjected to torture; right to participate in public affairs; right to education; right to

adequate housing; right to a fair trial; violence against women), which align with

Sustainable Development Goal indicators.

25. Expanded availability of disaggregated data, based on prohibited grounds of

discrimination, will help to ensure that progress is measured for all groups of rights holders,

and is crucial for ensuring that no one gets lost among population averages and therefore

gets “left behind”.

6 In the Sustainable Development Goals indicator framework, indicators classified as tier I are said to

have both methodology and data available, those classified as tier II are said to have methodology

only available, and those classified as tier III are said to have neither methodology nor data available.

26. The “data revolution” for sustainable development must fully embrace not only

human rights-sensitive indicators, but also a human rights-based approach to the collection,

production, analysis and dissemination of data. To this end, OHCHR has developed a

guidance note for Member States. The guidance, on a human rights-based approach to data,

brings together a set of principles, recommendations and good practices on data collection

and disaggregation, building on the key principles of transparency, privacy, participation,

self-identification and accountability. The indicator framework must give effect to the 2030

Agenda’s strong commitment to the collection and disaggregation of data to measure

progress in leaving no one behind — especially individuals and groups suffering

discrimination. Efforts are ongoing to ensure that data is collected and disaggregated by all

grounds of discrimination that are prohibited under international human rights law. This

includes the development of new partnerships, methods and data sources, including non-

traditional data sources.

27. In Kenya, as a result of support provided by OHCHR, the National Bureau of

Statistics and the National Commission on Human Rights signed a memorandum of

understanding in 2017, which establishes the framework for their institutional collaboration

on the development of human rights and Sustainable Development Goals indicators and on

data collection. A number of concrete activities have been agreed upon, including a joint

review of the Statistics Act of 2006, and preparation for the population and housing census

that is due in 2019. The memorandum of understanding will facilitate, over time, the

inclusion of Goals 10 and 16 by the National Bureau of Statistics in its measurements,

which will in turn realize a full capturing of human rights obligations and concerns. There

are plans to replicate the Kenyan experience in other countries, by bringing together data

producers and data users, involving them in specific and practical discussions on how they

plan to measure the implementation of the Goals and on how they can reinforce each

other’s work and ensure no one is being left behind and thus contribute to the

implementation of national Sustainable Development Goal road maps.

28. In Uganda, planning is under way for a similar project aimed at building the capacity

of the national Sustainable Development Goals task force, technical working groups,

United Nations agencies, the national human rights institution, civil society organizations

and academia on human rights indicators and the human rights-based approach to data, and

to explore potential partnerships.

29. The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics has completed a comprehensive

mapping of Sustainable Development Goals indicators available in the State of Palestine,

which OHCHR has complemented by providing an analysis of the relevance of such

indicators for monitoring the implementation of the national policy agenda and the seven

human rights treaties that the State of Palestine has acceded to. The Government used the

reporting process under the seven treaty bodies to identify priorities and data needs in

relation to the congruent human rights treaty provisions, and related priorities in connection

with the Sustainable Development Goals and the national policy agenda. The Palestinian

Central Bureau of Statistics and the Palestinian Independent Commission for Human Rights

signed a memorandum of understanding in April 2018 to cooperate more systematically on

the operationalization of the human rights-based approach to data, which includes

cooperating on the development, compilation and dissemination of human rights indicators,

such as Sustainable Development Goals indicators on violence against journalists and

human rights defenders, on the prevalence of discrimination and on conflict-related deaths.

30. The Government of Mexico, the National Institute of Statistics and Geography and

the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-

Women) agreed to establish a Global Centre of Excellence on Gender Statistics to pool

efforts in the fields of research, innovation, cooperation, and exchange of experiences for

the effective adaptation, implementation and monitoring of international commitments on

women’s rights and gender equality. Hosted by the National Institute of Statistics and

Geography, the Centre of Excellence will benefit substantially from the National Institute’s

experience, leadership and institutional and technical capacity to promote more, and

improved, gender statistics. The Centre of Excellence has the following objectives: to foster

innovations through an innovation lab; to provide technical assistance and training services

to national statistical offices and user communities (particularly in Central America); and

beyond Mexico and Latin America, to promote South-South and triangular cooperation

through training and learning exchanges.

31. Population and housing censuses are a primary source of disaggregated data needed

to formulate, implement and monitor development policies and programmes, and it is

therefore of paramount importance to include the most vulnerable and marginalized groups.

In Guatemala, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and OHCHR supported the

National Statistics Institute with incorporating a rights-based approach to the 2018 national

population and housing census, and facilitated coordination with indigenous people and

people of African descent in that context. In Ghana, the Office of the United Nations High

Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), with the Commission on Human Rights and

Administrative Justice, undertook a background study on groups that are at risk of

statelessness and remain uncounted in national administrative registries, and advocated for

the inclusion of questions related to nationality status in the upcoming population and

housing census.

D. Leaving no one behind and supporting gender equality

32. Translating the commitment to leaving no one behind in a transformative way

focuses on the need to dismantle discrimination and reduce inequalities by addressing the

structural root causes that keep people in poverty, and that marginalize, exclude or

discriminate against them in laws, policies and social practices. Human rights technical

cooperation and capacity-building can make a crucial contribution to the realization of the

goals of the 2030 Agenda by unpacking the overarching principle of leaving no one behind,

and promoting gender equality. Support for States’ efforts to address inequalities and

discrimination against women and the most left behind in their societies — through

legislative, institutional and policy reforms — contributes to the removal of obstacles that

impede the effective horizontal and transversal implementation of the Sustainable

Development Goals, as such support seeks to address the root causes of discrimination as

well as the multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination. The following are some

examples of the support being provided to States’ efforts to address inequalities, including

those related to addressing structural barriers: reversing unequal distributions of power,

resources and opportunities; and challenging discriminatory laws, policies, social norms

and gender stereotypes.

1. Gender equality and women’s rights

33. Access to justice is an important driver of change and is recognized in the 2030

Agenda as a means of achieving peaceful and inclusive societies, including in Goal 16.

While for women in particular, access to justice is key to breaking cycles of violence,

shifting power relations and achieving empowerment and gender equality, women continue

to face numerous obstacles in accessing remedies and reparations, due to structural

inequalities, gender stereotyping and discrimination. Technical cooperation in that regard

can therefore contribute to both Goal 5 and Goal 16.

34. In that respect, the landmark 2016 decision in the Sepur Zarco case in Guatemala set

an important precedent. It marks a major step forward in access to justice for indigenous

women, and contributes to Goal 16. For the first time in the history of Guatemala, sexual

violence committed during the country’s military conflict in the 1980s was successfully

prosecuted, leading to the conviction of two former members of the military for the murder,

rape and sexual enslavement of indigenous women. The court also ordered reparations in

order to address past denials of the rights to health, education and access to land. OHCHR

and UN-Women have provided support for years to help bring justice to these women, and

are currently engaged in technical assistance for the implementation of the reparation

measures.

35. In 2017, UN-Women worked to enhance access to legal aid for women living with

HIV to reduce gender-based stigma and discrimination. In Viet Nam, for example, UN-

Women helped the national network of women living with HIV to analyse specific forms of

discrimination that women face in the context of HIV and to identify gender-specific

bottlenecks in access to legal aid. This analysis resulted in a set of recommendations to

inform necessary amendments to the law on legal aid.

36. The Latin American model protocol for the investigation of gender-related killing of

women, developed in 2014 by OHCHR and UN-Women, is a valuable tool for

strengthening the capacities of judicial operators tackling investigation, prosecution and

judgment of cases of femicide, and thus addressing violence against women, in line with

target 5.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals. An online course on the protocol has been

developed, and was rolled out in Argentina and Central American countries in 2017.

37. Technical cooperation aimed at addressing structural gender-specific discrimination,

gender-based violence, harmful practices, and the lack of sexual and reproductive health

care, including maternal care services, contributes to the achievement of Goal 5 on gender

equality, and its effects cut across a number of other goals, in particular Goal 3 and Goal 4,

as shown in the examples below.

38. In Sudan, the United Nations supported the implementation of national legislation to

criminalize female genital mutilation. Female genital mutilation is currently outlawed in

some Sudanese states, but the practice is still highly prevalent nationwide. United Nations

advocacy and support to the National Parliament have recently led to a bill criminalizing

female genital mutilation. The bill, which is aimed at amending the country’s criminal law

to include female genital mutilation as a crime punishable by three years’ imprisonment,

has been approved by the Council of Ministers and is expected to be submitted to

Parliament for endorsement.

39. In Egypt, the United Nations supported the amendment of the law on female genital

mutilation, which made the practice a felony rather than a misdemeanour under the

Egyptian Penal Code. Support was also provided for the drafting of a law criminalizing

child marriage. Kyrgyzstan, in response to recommendations of the Committee on the

Elimination of Discrimination against Women and recommendations made as part of the

universal periodic review of the country, introduced a law criminalizing child marriage, and

toughened the punishment that is prescribed in the Criminal Code for bride-kidnapping.

40. In Namibia, support is provided for effective implementation of the Policy for the

Prevention and Management of Learner Pregnancy, recommended by the Committee on the

Rights of the Child as a means of addressing the high rate of adolescent girls dropping out

of school due to pregnancy.7 This policy allows girls to remain at school as long as possible

and to return to school after childbirth, thus ensuring their access to education and to future

opportunities to make a living. In 2017, UNICEF, in partnership with the Ministry of

Education and with the support of the World Health Organization (WHO), UNESCO and

UNFPA, conducted an extensive training programme for officials working in the area of

school health, which was aimed at creating a robust understanding of the background,

rationale and content of the policy. Officials who have received this training run sessions

and pass on their knowledge to colleagues and implementers.

41. In Uganda, OHCHR, UNFPA and WHO worked closely with the Ministry of

Health, the Uganda Human Rights Commission and civil society on the implementation of

the technical guidance on preventable maternal mortality and morbidity published by

OHCHR.8 In particular, they provided technical support to the Ministry of Health for the

development and elaboration of its multisectoral strategy on the application of a human

rights-based approach to reduce preventable maternal mortality and morbidity. In terms of

capacity-building, district-level training sessions were conducted with medical and other

technical personnel on the application of the technical guidance and on sexual and

reproductive health and rights.

42. Discriminatory norms and practices can be a central determinant of unequal

outcomes for children. “Son preference”, whereby boys are advantaged over girls with

respect to educational and other opportunities, reinforces the structural imbalance in power

relations in society, which perpetuates violence and discrimination against women and

7 See CRC/C/NAM/CO/2-3, para. 63.

8 A/HRC/21/22 and Corrs. 1 and 2.

girls. The UNFPA Global Programme to Prevent Son Preference and the Gender-Biased

Sex Selection is aimed at strengthening evidence-based national policies and programmes

to tackle son preference, low status of girls in society, and gender inequalities resulting in

gender-biased sex selection, in countries in Asia and the Caucasus identified as having a

prevalence of such practices. UNFPA bases its implementation on a comprehensive

multisectoral and multi-stakeholder approach. In Armenia, for example, it supported the

drafting of a national action plan for 2018–2022 and the development of methodological

guidelines for data collection, data and trends analysis, together with relevant national

research institutes; training programmes for health professionals; capacity-building of local

NGOs to design programmes to curb gender-biased sex selection and to promote gender

equality; and public education programmes.

43. The United Nations in Costa Rica organized the first female Central American

hackathon, aimed at promoting women’s empowerment in the realization of the 2030

Agenda and increasing Central American women’s participation in fostering solutions and

decision-making processes by developing capacity and leadership conditions for young

women in the technology sector. The hackathon was designed in collaboration with the

Ministry of Public Education, the Ministry of Science and Technology, academia, civil

society, the private sector and women, and brought together a diversity of stakeholders. It

was focused on Goal 11 and Goal 13, to generate innovative solutions to address challenges

related to urban sustainability, taking into account women’s needs and demands. One

hundred and eighty young women from Costa Rica and the region took part, 60 per cent of

whom were from rural areas, and were offered follow-up alternatives, such as technical

advice to finalize their prototype, continued technical training in subjects related to

innovation and technology, and opportunities for professional training for careers in the

science, technology, engineering and mathematics sector.

2. Children

44. Birth registration is a first step towards safeguarding individual rights and providing

every person with access to justice and social services. Unregistered children face

significant challenges with respect to accessing education and health services. Support

provided by the United Nations system to States in this respect contributes to the

implementation of Goal 16 but also Goal 4.

45. In Kosovo** in 2017, UNHCR and UNICEF designed a joint strategy in support of

the Coalition on Every Child’s Right to Nationality, to advocate for and support the

authorities in three areas, namely enforcement of the current legal system; the creation of a

new mechanism for systematic solutions for unregistered children and adults; and direct

legal support for children affected, from all communities, especially Roma, Ashkali and

Egyptian children. As a result, around 300 children have now had their birth registered, and

consequently have access to all associated social rights. Birth registration is a precondition

for social inclusion and access to rights for the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities.

As a result of the continuous advocacy, the authorities in Kosovo have initiated work on

creating a mechanism for systematic solutions, which will be at the core of the national

action plan to identify and reduce the number of unregistered persons that is to be endorsed

in 2018. In Kazakhstan, UNHCR and UNICEF are aiming to promote revision of the

national legislation related to birth registration to bring it into compliance with international

standards and ensure that all children are registered at birth regardless of the legal status of

their parents.

3. Persons with albinism

46. Since the end of 2014, an increase in attacks, killings and abductions has been

reported in Malawi, targeted at persons with albinism. The visit in 2016 of the Independent

Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism brought about

heightened attention to the human rights situation faced by persons with albinism and gave

** References to Kosovo shall be understood to be in the context of Security Council resolution 1244 (1999).

rise to a number of recommendations. In follow-up to the Independent Expert’s visit, the

United Nations designed a comprehensive programme to strengthen protection of the

human rights of persons with albinism, which included advocacy and awareness-raising,

support for community-based protection mechanisms, a study on the root causes of the

attacks, training and training materials for prosecutors and investigators, and capacity-

building for the Association of Persons with Albinism, as well as education and health

interventions. With United Nations support, the Government adopted an albinism action

plan, which has enabled multisectoral work, putting persons with albinism at the forefront

of the design and delivery of interventions, and introduced legislation with new crimes and

harsher penalties. Support was provided for the collection of disaggregated data, as part of

the 2018 census. Awareness of the need to protect persons with albinism has increased

within communities and within the police, including through community policing forums.

The programme involves OHCHR, UN-Women, UNICEF and UNDP, in partnership with

the Government, civil society, the police, local authorities and traditional leaders.

Remaining challenges include changing harmful cultural norms and beliefs, bringing the

instigators of crimes to justice, the cross-border nature of the crimes and the frequent family

involvement in them, and the low level of awareness of albinism. Notwithstanding these

challenges, United Nations interventions have contributed to a downward trend in the

number of attacks against persons with albinism: in the first six months of 2017, three

murders were reported, as opposed to seven in the same period in 2016.

4. Persons with disabilities

47. Following the ratification by Belarus of the Convention on the Rights of Persons

with Disabilities, the United Nations in Belarus supported the preparation process for a

national action plan, spearheaded by the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection, aimed at

inclusive implementation of the Convention. Joint efforts by UNDP, the Ministry of

Information and civil society organizations have resulted in the adoption of an information

strategy on disability. Furthermore, within the framework of the National Action Plan for

Improving the Situation of Children and Protection of their Rights for 2017–2021, UNICEF

in Belarus has been focusing on the most vulnerable groups of children, paying particular

attention to the cross-cutting issues of disability, violence and adolescence.

48. In Jordan, with the technical support of WHO, the Ministry of Health developed the

Mental Health and Substance Use Action Plan 2018–2021 to achieve target 3.5 of the

Sustainable Development Goals. The action plan is in line with the Convention on the

Rights of Persons with Disabilities — representing a major step forward in improving the

lives of people with mental disabilities. The action plan aims to avoid, as much as possible,

services provided through mental health institutions, which are associated with numerous

human rights violations and poor health outcomes; rather, it promotes full inclusion and

participation in community life and access to quality health-care services as close as

possible to people’s homes. This has important implications in terms of

deinstitutionalization and the development of community-based mental health and social

services.

5. Third gender, non-binary, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people

49. In 2015, Cabo Verde became the first African country to implement the OHCHR-led

Free and Equal public information campaign at the national level. The implementation

involved the United Nations country team, under the coordination of UN-Women, and

brought together the Cabo Verdean Institute for Gender Equality and Equity, the National

Commission for Human Rights and Citizenship, and civil society. Based on the principle of

leaving no one behind, has contributed to public visibility of discrimination and violence

affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons. Changing people’s level

of awareness and advocating to eliminate barriers affecting the lesbian, gay, bisexual,

transgender and intersex community are the driving objectives of the campaign, which is

being put into action through awareness-raising and advocacy campaigns, knowledge-

sharing, and the mobilization of youth. Current efforts of the campaign include activities

that will contribute to eliminating bullying of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and

intersex adolescents and youth.

50. In Pakistan, the Resident Coordinator’s Office, UNDP, ILO, the Joint United

Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and UN-Women provided support for the

development of a responsive policy to protect the transgender community through policy

reform, legislation and the establishment of protection mechanisms. In collaboration with

the National Commission for Human Rights, the United Nations supported a

comprehensive series of consultations with transgender persons and groups, human rights

organizations and relevant government stakeholders from the four provinces, on developing

legislation to protect transgender persons in Pakistan, and provided technical assistance for

its drafting. The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill was approved by the

Senate in March 2018 and by the National Assembly in May 2018. The bill applies a

definition of the term “transgender” that is inclusive of people with gender identities

beyond the binary concept of male and female. Notably, it reaffirms guarantees of all

fundamental rights outlined in the Constitution to transgender persons, provides for official

recognition of a person’s gender identity without requiring consent from a medical board,

prohibits discrimination, and lays out penalties for acts of discrimination and violence

against transgender persons. The United Nations assisted in dialogue and consultation and

supported transgender persons’ organizations in advocating and engaging with legislators at

the federal and provincial levels, and has advocated for specific measures for protection and

respect of the rights of transgender persons in a number of areas, such as health care,

education, access to training and employment, and protection measures. Legislative and

policy reforms in the four provinces are currently being introduced, which are aimed at

destigmatizing and ensuring inclusion. Furthermore, the National Commission for Human

Rights is planning the establishment of a help desk that will provide legal aid, assistance in

access to social security and information for transgender persons. UNDP and UNAIDS are

planning measures to assist communities in Pakistan that face higher levels of vulnerability

and exclusion, on account of their gender identities, in accessing expeditious, timely and

comprehensive social justice.

6. Anti-drug policy, the Sustainable Development Goals and human rights

51. It is noted in the outcome document of the special session of the General Assembly

on the world drug problem9 that efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and

to effectively address the world drug problem are complementary and mutually reinforcing.

The document signals a shift to drug control by adopting a cross-cutting human rights-

based approach and establishing linkages to key priorities of the United Nations system,

including the Sustainable Development Goals. The United Nations Office on Drugs and

Crime (UNODC) supported the Government of Myanmar in developing a new national

drug policy, guided by the outcome document and the Sustainable Development Goals,

making Myanmar the first country in South-East Asia to adopt, at the national level, the

framework derived from the special session. Under the new national drug policy, a people-

and health-based approach is adopted, and the priority areas identified are supply reduction

and alternative development, drug demand reduction and harm reduction, international

cooperation, research and analysis, and compliance with human rights. Furthermore, in

order to advance the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, specifically

Goal 3, and the promotion of human rights, the new policy recognizes the importance of

drug treatment in prisons and recommends investment in prison reform to address prison

management and improve access to prison health services, including drug treatment service.

UNODC, UNAIDS and WHO are also spearheading a project on the improvement of health

in prisons. On 17 April 2018, Myanmar released more than 6,000 prisoners who had been

convicted for drugs offences. The recent amendment of the drugs law and the new drugs

policy had an impact on the decision by the President to pardon prisoners convicted of

drug-related offences. Similar initiatives are under way in Colombia and Tunisia.

9 General Assembly resolution S-30/1, annex.

E. Participation and inclusiveness for sustainability of achievements

Inclusiveness and social dialogue

52. Technical assistance on human rights in the framework of social dialogue can

contribute to reaching agreements based on human rights and meaningful participation, and

to advancing economic, cultural, political and social rights. OHCHR intervened in several

social protests, facilitating dialogue among the parties, diminishing tensions and supporting

the implementation of the agreements reached, by providing methodological support and

technical assistance on human rights.

53. The above-mentioned approach was particularly useful in ending the civil strike in

Buenaventura, Colombia. The “civil strike to live in dignity and peace” erupted in May

2017. Significant numbers of the population of this major port city took part in the strike,

which was fuelled by the continued lack of access to drinking water and sanitation, the lack

of health services in the public hospital, poor working conditions in the port facilities, and

high rates of poverty and unemployment despite the commitment to invest in the city that

had been announced in the context of the 2014 development strategy for the Pacific coast.

54. OHCHR acted as mediator, facilitated dialogue between parties, and provided

support in the negotiation process between the Government and the executive committee of

the strike — in particular by providing technical assistance on human rights which allowed

the parties to move forward and to reach agreements in line with international standards, for

example with regard to the rights to health care and access to land, and to including an

ethnic and cultural perspective. In coordination with the Office of the Prosecutor General,

OHCHR ensured that the proposals and agreements corresponded to concrete measures,

addressed the principal demands of the strikers and included specific mechanisms to

guarantee the fulfilment of agreements. OHCHR is providing methodological support for

the thematic secretariats established as part of the agreement to end the strike, which offer

an important space for community participation in the designing of human rights policies.

For example, the municipality agreed to engage in a consultation process on the municipal

land management plan with the community of African descent and ensure the community’s

free, prior and informed consent. Furthermore, an autonomous fund was established that

will be key to implementing policies that are aimed at fulfilling economic and social rights,

and have an ethnic and gender perspective — which are essential on the path to ensuring

that no one is left behind in development.

IV. Conclusions

55. With the adoption of the 2030 Agenda, States entered a pivotal phase in which a

new transformative vision for development was articulated. Firmly grounded in

international human rights standards, the 2030 Agenda strives to leave no one behind and

puts the imperative of equality and non-discrimination at its heart.

56. The examples identified in the present report are just some illustrations of the types

of United Nations technical cooperation that are assisting States in achieving the

Sustainable Development Goals, fully in line with their international human rights

commitments. A major element of technical cooperation is aimed at assisting Member

States in fulfilling the pledge to leave no one behind and act on the imperative to have more

systematic data disaggregation to help achieve and measure the Goals. The United Nations,

including OHCHR, has developed guidance tools to support policymakers, statisticians and

data specialists in government agencies, national human rights institutions, equality bodies

and civil society organizations to contribute to this effort, which includes guidance on a

human rights approach to data. In a number of countries, technical assistance has led to the

development of human rights indicators that are linked to the Sustainable Development

Goals and contribute to monitoring progress towards the fulfilment of the Goals. In order to

support States in acting on the imperative to collect and publish data disaggregated by

grounds of discrimination, capacities are being built and partnerships developed. Bringing

together data producers and data users improves coherence and ensures that reports on the

Sustainable Development Goals are rigorous, data-based and evidence-based. A major

breakthrough in this respect is the technical cooperation for the development of

partnerships with national statistics offices, which is being replicated in a number of

countries.

57. The United Nations system is putting in place a comprehensive framework to

support Member States in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. Solid experience has

been gained with technical cooperation and capacity-building aimed at mainstreaming

human rights into development planning. This is now evolving to respond to the objectives

of the 2030 Agenda and the challenges involved in realizing them, including via a new

generation of United Nations Development Assistance Frameworks that knit together

Sustainable Development Goals and human rights recommendations in order to ensure

coherent technical assistance. The efforts to have better access to the recommendations

generated by the international human rights mechanisms, namely by treaty bodies, special

procedures and the universal periodic review, in a holistic manner, and clearly identifying

their specific relevance to the efforts for achievement of the Sustainable Development

Goals, have been acknowledged by numerous States as important and useful, including for

the strengthening of policy coherence and to follow up on and review both human rights

obligations and development goals.

58. Addressing root causes, inequalities and discrimination will contribute to removing

structural obstacles to the full realization of the Sustainable Development Goals and to

building peaceful, inclusive and more equitable societies that leave no one behind.

Therefore, the United Nations system is also supporting States in addressing discrimination

against women and marginalized groups within their societies, through technical

cooperation aimed at eliminating discriminatory laws and practices and by designing

inclusive programmes and action plans. Recommendations of human rights mechanisms,

guidance materials developed under the aegis of the Human Rights Council, guiding

principles and technical guidance, and tools such as model laws and protocols, can assist in

these efforts, and in making progress both at cross-cutting levels and on specific Goals, as

noted in the examples in the present report.

59. The efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals certainly open new and

innovative avenues for the further realization of human rights in practical terms, and vice

versa. As shown in the present report, successful human rights technical cooperation

programmes can provide blueprints that can be replicated in other countries, including by

involving Member States in technical cooperation and the sharing of good practice, such as

the ongoing cooperation projects of Paraguay to support the establishment of online

databases based on SIMORE Plus. Furthermore, the use of new technologies, such as the

hackathon described above, opens new avenues to give voice to people to propose solutions

to the problems they face in their communities, to promote the participation of people in

achieving sustainable development in the context in which they live, and to generate a real

commitment to the 2030 Agenda.

60. Technical cooperation and capacity-building will be a critical vehicle in supporting

and contributing to the effective and inclusive implementation of the 2030 Agenda, and of

national development objectives, and in ensuring that these are fully aligned with human

rights standards and obligations as requested by Member States in this transformative

vision for development.