Georgia hosts SDG 16+ Forum

The Government of Georgia hosted the inaugural Annual Showcase of the 16+ Forum in the capital Tbilisi. Over 150 participants from 25 countries shared experiences from the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 16 and interlinkages with other SDGs.

Focusing on achieving peaceful, just and inclusive societies, SDG 16 is one of the most comprehensive goals of the 2030 Agenda. In April 2016, the World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA) along with its partners - the Permanent Missions of the Czech Republic, Denmark, Georgia, Guatemala, Sierra Leone, Sweden, the Republic of Korea, Timor-Leste, Tunisia and the g7+ - launched the 16+ Forum, a platform to bring together governments, local and international civil society organizations (CSOs), members of the UN system, the private sector and academia to discuss and share best practices on efforts to implement SDG 16+ at the national and sub-national level.

The UN Women Country Representative in Georgia, Erika Kvapilova, underlined the centrality of gender equality for SDG 16 and the whole 2030 Agenda in the Forum’s closing panel: “Building sustainable, peaceful, just and inclusive societies goes hand in hand with ending violence against women and girls in all forms and contexts, removing discriminatory laws and practices, and increasing women’s and girls’ participation in decision-making, conflict prevention and peacebuilding.”

Subsequent Annual Showcases will be held in different 16+ Forum member countries. The outcomes of the SDG 16+ movement are expected to feed into the 2019 UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, the theme of which will focus on empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality.