MSMGF and several key partners attended the second annual United Nations High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development in New York from July 10 – 19. Designed as the central platform for review of Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the HLPF was greeted with unprecedented interest this year with over 2500 participants from civil society.
The 17 SDGs are comprised of 169 targets which ambitiously aim to achieve human rights across the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. We outlined ways to get involved in the HLPF here. Specifically the targets in SDG 3, “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages” (especially Target 3.3 on “Ending HIV”), provide a vital entry point for addressing the HIV and health needs of LGBTI people, as illuminated by our recent publication, Agenda 2030 for LGBTI Health and Well-Being.
MSMGF also partnered with OutRight Action International, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and RFSL – the Swedish Federation for LGBTQ Rights – to organize an official UN side event on July 11th to discuss the importance of data on LGBTI people for Agenda 2030. Amidst a packed room with representatives from Member States, UN agencies, development practitioners, and civil society, Micah Grzywnowicz from RFSL introduced the concept of inclusion for LGBTI people in the context of “leave no one behind.” Dr. Mandeep Dhaliwal from UNDP then discussed efforts to create indicators for the LGBTI Inclusion Index, which seeks to measure inclusion of LGBTI people across five dimensions of development. Dr. Felicity Daly from OutRight and I then presented an overview of available data on the health of LGBTI people and recommendations to Member States for reporting on LGBTI health in the SDGs, as detailed in-depth in Agenda 2030 for LGBTI Health and Well-Being. Finally, Niluka Perera, a young gay activist from Sri Lanka and member of the Platform to Fast Track the Human Rights and HIV Responses with Gay and Bisexual Men, discussed efforts in Asia and the Pacific to include youth LGBTI people in SDG implementation. Read more via MSMGF
