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How to Participate

How to Participate

PREPARATORY WEBINARS

UN DESA and the Major Groups and other Stakeholders Coordination Mechanism will host preparatory webinars to outline the latest HLPF announcements and the ways that Major Groups and other Stakeholders (MGoS) constituents can participate. The Webex log-in details will be shared via the HLPF MGoS-CM mailing list. The preparatory webinars will take place on:

  • Thursday, 27 May 2021 @ 9am (New York) ET
  • Thursday, 1 July 2021 @ TBC (New York) ET

VIRTUAL FORMAT

Traditionally, the three types of organisations listed below are those permitted to enter the United Nations building to participate in the HLPF. The 2021 HLPF however, will be hosted on a virtual platform and its official sessions will broadcast on UN Web TV. No formal registration is needed to watch and listen to the official sessions, therefore registration through Indico will not be necessary this year.

In order to actively participate in the HLPF, non-state actors are encouraged to join a Major Groups and other Stakeholders (MGoS) constituency. Contact details can be found on the MGoS Introduction page. Formal roles in the official sessions of the HLPF, such as Resource Persons and Lead Discussants, are largely determined by nomination processes which commence through the MGoS.

  • Organisations accredited with ECOSOC consultative status

    The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is the main entry point into the UN system for NGOs. ECOSOC is the central mechanism for coordination of the activities of the United Nations system and its specialized agencies and supervision of subsidiary bodies in the economic, social, environmental and related fields. It is the principal body for the coordination, policy review, policy dialogue and recommendations on issues of economic and social development and for implementation of the international development goals agreed at the major United Nations conferences and summits, including the Sustainable Development Goals. The consultative relationship with ECOSOC is governed by Resolution 1996/31. Further information can be found here.

  • Organisations on the CSD Roster

    The organizations that were registered for the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 but were not at the time ECOSOC accredited organizations were invited to join the CSD Roster which enabled them to attend the CSD. The purpose was to permit these organisations to attend and participate in the work of the Commission on Sustainable Development without the necessity of obtaining ECOSOC consultative status.

  • Organisations affiliated with the major groups and other stakeholders

    In a process that is similar to the CSD Roster above, representatives from the major groups and other stakeholders engaged in the implementation of Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals who would not usually have the opportunity to attend the HLPF are also encouraged to participate.

FUNDING

Due to the virtual format of the 2021 HLPF, funding will not be allocated to support the travel of MGoS representatives to New York.

MINISTERIAL DECLARATION

The President of the ECOSOC Mr. Munir Akram has appointed H.E. Ambassador Jukka Salovaara, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Finland to the United Nations, and H.E. Ambassador Mohamed Hussein Bahr Aluloom, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Iraq to the United Nations, as co-facilitators of the 2021 ECOSOC High Level forum and HLPF Ministerial Declaration.

Please check the Outcome section of this website to find letters from the co-facilitators, a draft timeline of the negotiations, and the latest drafts of the Ministerial Declaration. The negotiations are closed and therefore not broadcast on UN Web TV. A limited number of representatives of the MGoS are invited to observe and make interventions during the negotiations. Please contact your MGoS to find out about the nomination process.

THEMATIC SESSIONS

  • Lead Discussants

    The MGoS will nominate 13 Lead Discussants to participate in the official thematic sessions of the HLPF. Each of the MGoS will conduct its own process to nominate Lead Discussants. These nominations will be reviewed by the MGoS Coordination Mechanism. A slate of nominations will then submitted by the MGoS Coordination Mechanism to the President of ECOSOC for review. Please do not contact UN DESA directly to submit a nomination. Please contact your MGoS to request information about the process.

  • Interventions from the Floor

    In addition to the allocation of formal roles in the HLPF, MGoS constituents also have the opportunity to deliver an intervention or ask a question when the official session discussions are opened to the floor. These interventions are coordinated by the MGoS-CM, please contact your MGoS to find out more about these processes.

  • Stakeholder Perspective Session

    UN DESA collaborates with the MGoS-CM to organise an official session of the HLPF to discuss stakeholder perspectives. The official session will take place on Friday, 9 July @ 3pm (New York time) ET. The title of the session is “Vision and priorities of civil society, the private sector and other major groups and stakeholders: realizing the SDGs during the COVID-19 recovery.” The Moderators, Resource Persons, and Lead Discussants will be determined by nomination processes which commence through the MGoS. This session will be available to watch live on UN Web TV.

VOLUNTARY NATIONAL REVIEWS

Information on this year’s Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) can be found on the HLPF website here.

 

  • Questions to VNR Countries

    Following the presentation of a Voluntary National Review (VNR), the MGoS have an opportunity to ask questions of the presenting countries. The MGoS-CM will soon request expressions of interest to draft questions and identify candidates. To find out more about these processes, please join one of the upcoming webinars co-hosted by UN DESA and the MGoS-CM. These webinars will cover key characteristics and objectives of the VNRs, as well as opportunities and best practices for stakeholder engagement in preparation for the HLPF. The webinars will take place in French, Spanish, and English on the dates below. Login details will be shared via the MGoS-CM mailing list:

    Français: Lundi, 7 juin @ 9h - 10h ET (New York)
    UN DESA en collaboration avec les grands groupes et les autres parties prenantes (GGPP) vont organiser un webinaire pour présenter les Examens Nationaux Volontaires (ENV) auprès du Forum politique de haut niveau pour le développement durable (FPHN) aux nouveaux représentants des GGPP. Le webinaire va couvrir les caractéristiques et principaux objectifs des ENV, et les opportunités et les meilleures pratiques pour l'engagement des GGPP pendant le FPHN.

    Webinaire [FR]: Un bref aperçu des examens nationaux volontaires (ENV) au FPHN

    Présentation PowerPoint par UNDESA et les Grands groupes et les autres parties prenantes (GGPP)

    Español: Martes, 8 de junio @ 2.30 – 3.30pm ET (Nueva York)
    UN DESA en colaboración con los grupos principales y otras partes interesadas van a organizar un seminario para presentar los Examenes Nacionales Voluntarios (EVN) antes del Foro Político de Alto Nivel sobre el Desarrollo Sostenible (FPAN) a los nuevos representantes de los grupos principales y otras partes interesadas. El seminario cubrirá las características y los objetivos claves de los EVN, así como las oportunidades y las mejores prácticas para la participación de los grupos principales y otras partes interesadas en la preparación para el FPAN.

    Seminario [ES] - Examenes Nacionales Voluntarios (EVN)

    Presentación de PowerPoint par UN DESA et los Grupos principales y otras partes interesadas

    English: Wednesday, 9 June @ 9 – 10am (New York)
    UN DESA in collaboration with the major groups and other stakeholders (MGoS) will host a webinar to introduce new representatives of the MGoS to the Voluntary National Reviews (VNR) at the high-level political forum on sustainable development (HLPF). The webinar will cover key characteristics and objectives of the VNRs, as well as opportunities and best practices for stakeholder engagement in preparation for the HLPF.

    Webinar [EN] - A brief overview of the Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) at the HLPF 2021

    PowerPoint Presentation by UN DESA and the Major Groups and other Stakeholders

    The MGoS-CM will request expressions of interest to draft questions and identify candidates. Please contact your MGoS constituency to request information about the process. Please complete the questionnaire by Friday, 18 June to join the process: https://forms.gle/wQsRSbnERrQ68AGw6

WRITTEN CONTRIBUTIONS

  • Sectoral Position Papers

    MGoS are invited to submit extended position papers, which will be uploaded as inputs to the Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. The focus of the Sectoral Position Papers is the theme of the 2021 HLPF, as noted above. The deadline for submission of the MGoS Sectoral Position Papers has now passed.

  • Paragraph 89 Reports

    In line with Paragraph 89 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, “The HLPF will support participation in follow-up and review processes by the major groups and other relevant stakeholders in line with resolution 67/290. We call upon those actors to report on their contribution to the implementation of the Agenda.”

    The (soft) deadline for the submission of Paragraph 89 reports will be COB Monday, 7 June 2021. Please continue to share your reports with Emnet Bekele: [email protected]. Paragraph 89 Reports will also be submitted as inputs to the Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform here.

OTHER EVENTS

  • Side Events

    Information, including application guidelines, can be found on the HLPF website under Other Events. All side events will be held virtually. One slot will be allocated to each of the MGoS constituencies. ECOSOC accredited organisations and Organisations on the CSD Roster may also submit applications to host side events.

    UN DESA will not be responsible for hosting the digital platform for each side event, this will be the responsibility of the side event’s host organisation. Please do not submit applications with timings for side events that overlap with the official sessions of the HLPF. With reference to Question #3 in application form, all organisations above are asked should select ‘Representative of the Major Groups and other Stakeholders’ from the drop-down menu.

    The application deadline has now passed. The applications are currently being reviewed, DESA will contact applicants soon.

  • Exhibitions

    Information, including application guidelines, can be found on the HLPF website under Other Events. All exhibitions will be held virtually. UN DESA will not be responsible for hosting the digital platform for each exhibition, this will be the responsibility of the host organisation.

    The application deadline has now passed. The applications are currently being reviewed, DESA will contact applicants soon.

  • Special Events

    Please also take an opportunity to explore the Special Events that the UN DESA and its partner agencies and organisations will organise virtually, on the margins of the HLPF this year. ‘The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2021’ and the ‘2021 SDGs Learning, Training, and Practice’ can be found under Other Events.

VNR LABS

A series of VNR Labs will be convened on the margins of the 2021 HLPF, to provide an informal platform for experience sharing and reflection on the Voluntary National Review process. As always, the Labs will be held under the Chatham House rule and will be open to Member States, the UN system and representatives of Major Groups and other Stakeholders.