16+ Forum Virtual Event
WFUNA and the 16+ Forum, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica, will be hosting a series of virtual sessions on the 28th and 29th of January, 2021 in the lead-up to the 4th Annual Showcase, which will be taking place in San José later this year. These sessions, which will provide stakeholders with a glimpse of what to expect from the Annual Showcase itself, will cover an array of issues related to the advancement of peaceful, just and inclusive societies for all, with a focus on solutions and best practices that have been successful within the context of a global crisis. As such, the theme for the virtual sessions will be ‘SDG 16+ Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic’.
The pandemic has noticeably slowed progress towards the achievement of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. Stakeholders across the world are struggling to cope with the steady deterioration of the rule of law and diminished access to justice for distressed populations. There has been a sustained weakening of democratic institutions globally and the pandemic has provided a platform for states to restrict the movement of people, curtail basic freedoms and exclude marginalized populations from recovery efforts. Within this context, the 16+ Forum invites our global and regional partners to deliberate on these new ground realities and discuss how best to implement efficient policy measures for all.
Given the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the implementation of the SDGs, much time was devoted throughout 2020 to analyzing the ways in which the global health crisis has slowed progress and, in certain cases, even led to a reversal of progress made over the last four years. While such discussions are undoubtedly critical, these four virtual sessions will aim to focus on practical solutions and lessons learned to take forward as we continue our efforts to recover from the pandemic and drive progress on SDG 16.
The virtual sessions will feed into the 16+ Forum Costa Rica Annual Showcase scheduled to be held from 26-29 April in San José, Costa Rica. The sessions will feature four panels of speakers on the following topics:
January 28th 2021
1) 8:30-9:45am EST: ‘SDG16+ and the COVID-19 Pandemic’
2) 10:00-11:15am EST: ‘The Erosion of Public Trust – Rethinking the Road to Good Governance’
January 29th 2021
3) 8:30-9:45am EST: ‘Mainstreaming SDG 16+ - The Challenges of Monitoring and Reporting’
4) 10:00-11:15am EST: ‘Access to Justice – Politics, Rights and Inclusion’
Please note that these virtual sessions are open to anyone interested in the topics above. To register, please click on the following link and select which sessions you would like to attend - https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sdg-16-beyond-the-covid-19-pandemic-tickets-132588861855.
We hope to see you on the webinars soon!
