Müjgan Suver, Chairperson of the Marmara Group Foundation EU and Human Rights Platform, attended the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW60) meeting titled "Women's Empowerment and Its Relation to Sustainable Development," held under the UN Economic and Social Council, where we hold Consultative Member status, together with our volunteer businesswoman member Gülçin Güloğlu, and gave a presentation about our Foundation's program during the interactive expert panel.
She emphasized the importance of including universities and civil society organizations in country programs within the Sustainable Development Goals aimed at eradicating poverty, combating inequalities, and protecting the environment by 2030. She also stressed the importance of including information on how data and accountability will be monitored and evaluated, and how priorities will be determined when preparing programs. March 12-17, 2016 - New York
The text of Müjgan Suver's speech at the United Nations Economic and Social Council is as follows.
Dear Participants,
As you know, at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, during the first day of the three-day Summit that began on September 25, 193 member countries of the UN unanimously adopted the Sustainable Development Goals aimed at eradicating poverty, combating inequalities, and protecting the environment by 2030.
The adoption of the Sustainable Development Agenda, consisting of 17 main goals, was enthusiastically welcomed by delegates at the General Assembly, including more than 150 heads of state.
As an important innovation, we are pleased that the 4th goal, "Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all," and the 5th goal, "Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls," are included among the 17 main goals.
In this case, a matter that member states must first consider and decide is how priorities will be determined, how goals will be implemented, and how data and accountability will be monitored and evaluated.
We believe in the importance of UNDP and UNESCO, which are part of the UN Development Group, including academia, scientists, and civil society in their work to build trust.
We would like to reiterate the importance of NGOs being included in official delegations attending UN Women meetings and participating in negotiation processes.
We civil society organizations insist that necessary mechanisms for stronger scrutiny and accountability must be established at national and local levels.
It is essential to have independent evaluation elements at regional and international levels. All these will help governments, other stakeholders, and us civil society decide whether progress has been made on the agenda in the future.
The accountability system established will also influence discussions about the success of the agenda.
We have entered a period where our responsibilities have increased. Increasing social welfare, improving quality of life, thus eliminating inequalities, good governance, a sound legal system, advanced democracy, and economy must all be on our agenda.
Dear Participants,
The geography I come from is unique with its distinctive values and intertwined socio-cultural structure. The people of this geography deserve much higher quality living conditions.
Dear Participants,
In conclusion, I wish for a successful meeting, that the discussions and collaborations formed here will empower our future work and provide significant contributions.