ANEC engaged in youth and coalition meetings in lead-up to Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) 22-23 March 2019, Bangkok, Thailand

Asia Pacific Association for Basic and Adult Education (ASPBAE) organized a two days preparatory meetings in the lead-up to the 6th Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) to consolidate civil society positions and recommendations for a regional sustainable development agenda.

The meetings were held to orient participants on the APFSD, agree on key messages, and map out strategies for engagement. The meetings served as an excellent opportunity for exchanging views and sharing experiences between and among the youth constituencies, the national coalitions, and education practitioners.

The youth meeting was organized on the first day with youth representatives sharing the results of the consultations that were held in their respective countries to discuss the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4 (Goal 4 on education), from the perspective of young people. The meeting agreed on a joint statement that outlines the youth agenda on the SDGs.

The second day of the preparatory meeting was more intense with participants coming from 12 countries and representing national coalitions, youth organizations, and NGOs.

The coalition representatives presented highlights of the spotlight reports that they have prepared in time for the APFSD and the forthcoming High-level Political Forum (HLPF) to be held in New York in July 2019.

The spotlight reports offer an alternative analysis that highlight the perspective of civil society and marginalize groups on the SDG progress and implementation process.

At the end of the second day pre-meeting, participants consolidated the reports and came up with a joint position paper that serves as guide for the delegation’s participation and intervention to both the APFSD and the civil society-organized People’s Forum.

On 24-26 March 2019, The Asia Pacific People’s Forum on Sustainable Development (APPFSD) was held to consolidate civil society positions and recommendations for a regional sustainable development agenda.

At the People’s Forum, Asia-Pacific civil society organizations explored common ground and actions, developed common messages, and coordinated strategies for more effective participation in intergovernmental processes on sustainable development.

The People’s Forum was organized by the Asia-Pacific Regional CSO Engagement Mechanism (APRCEM), to consolidate civil society positions and recommendations for a regional sustainable development agenda.

Asia-Pacific civil society organizations (CSOs) from different sectors and countries explored common ground and actions, developed common messages, and coordinated strategies for more effective participation in national, regional, and global intergovernmental processes on sustainable development.

The People’s Forum aimed to:

1. Foster sharing and learning from a variety of experiences of organizations and constituencies and to enhance capacity of civil society participants on sustainable development at the national, regional, and global levels, and on the opportunities and modalities for engaging these processes, including identifying and dealing with key systemic issues/barriers to the achievement of sustainable development;
2. Help build an understanding of sustainable development as a comprehensive whole with strong inter-linkages across its various dimensions and components; therefore, to also link the work of various other CSO campaigns, peoples’ movements, grassroots constituencies, scientific and academic communities across national borders;
3. Dialogue on the structure and content of the APFSD with its theme ‘Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality in Asia and the Pacific’, formulate joint positions, as well as strategies interventions at the 6th Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD), the High-level Political Forum (HLPF), and other processes; and
4. Agree on joint actions and follow-up to civil society positions adopted to strengthen and support each other’s ideas, plans, and actions across national borders.

​CSO Collective Statement for APFSD 2019

ESCAP Asia and the Pacific SDG Progress Report 2019

SDG 4 Profile

South Asia SDGs CSOs Review - Final Book