27 May 2021
This webinar, jointly organised by UNDP Sweden and the Foundation, explored how the UN pursues meaningful inclusion in practice, with examples from provided from Colombia and Malawi, and what is needed to further strengthen this work.
Key takeaways:
- The UN has an important convening role to play at the country level: facilitating dialogue between civil society and governments; ensuring that civil society voices are raised with governments and that their demands are translated into concrete action.
- The UN should explore how to engage with different actors, including universities and traditional authorities and religious leaders, to advance inclusion.
- Flexible and accessible funding to local civil society is critical to promoting inclusivity at the country level. This requires donors to find ways around requirements that organisations are registered and hold bank accounts. International NGOs can also play an important role in supporting local civil society organisations to access funds and identify ways to ensure that funding reaches marginalised communities. Donor governments should also require that all project proposals take into account inclusion dimensions.
- Inclusivity should be mainstreamed throughout the UN’s work, including by ensuring that structural barriers to engagement (access to roads, accessibility ramps, language, etc.) are taken into consideration when conducting trainings, consultations, etc. International NGOs and civil society engaging with the UN also have a responsibility to ensure that their own events are accessible to allow include diverse perspectives in discussions on how to strengthen the work of the UN.