Sustainable Development Goal 16: Promote just, peaceful and inclusive societies

When the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted, Goal 16 was seen as truly transformative, formally linking, for the first time at the United Nations, development, peace, justice, and good governance. Some of its more ambitious targets include significantly reducing all forms of violence, ending abuse and violence against children, promoting the rule of law, reducing illicit financial flows and corruption, and developing accountable and transparent institutions.

But Goal 16 was not adopted without controversy. Many countries argued against the interruption of peace and security, and even more so justice, considerations into the development sphere, and would have preferred that the goal be dropped altogether. Other countries maintained that this goal was central for them and that their support for the 2030 Agenda hinged upon it.

Nearly three years later, progress on Goal 16 is uneven, and there is considerable doubt that it can be achieved at its current implementation rate. Challenges arise in all countries, including Uganda, and are likely to become more acute given current trends, particularly those related to political violence.

From a global perspective, violence universally is on the rise and becoming increasingly complex and multidimensional. Almost half the world’s people have been affected by political violence over the last fifteen years, with lower-income countries bearing a disproportionately high share of the burden of armed violence. Yet developed countries are not immune in many parts of the developed world, different forms of violence are also on the rise. For instance, Uganda itself faces domestic challenges in addressing issues of violence, kidnappings and murders, particularly against women and children.

Peace, stability, human rights and effective governance based on the rule of law are important conduits for sustainable development. We are living in a world that is increasingly divided. Some regions enjoy sustained levels of peace, security and prosperity while others fall into seemingly endless cycles of conflict and violence. This is by no means inevitable and must be addressed.

High levels of armed violence and insecurity have a destructive impact on a country’s development, affecting economic growth and often resulting in long standing grievances among communities that can last for generations. Sexual violence, crime, exploitation and torture are also prevalent where there is conflict or no rule of law, and countries must take measures to protect those who are most at risk.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to significantly reduce all forms of violence, and work with governments and communities to find lasting solutions to conflict and insecurity. Strengthening the rule of law and promoting human rights is key to this process, as is reducing the flow of illicit arms and strengthening the participation of developing countries in the institutions of global governance.

The challenge will be linking these subnational priorities with national strategies.

A common impediment for countries attempting to implement Goal 16 is the yawning gaps in reliable data, making it difficult to measure progress in meeting the goal’s targets. Fragile and conflict-affected states, in particular, often have incomplete, imperfect, or a total lack of data. The countries of the world vary hugely in their capacity to collect, monitor, and track indicators.

Moreover, obstacles to reaching the goals of SDG 16 are increasingly encountered in urban areas. Populations in cities are expected to increase to almost 70 per cent by 2050, and cities register higher homicide rates than rural areas. The challenges found within ‘fragile cities’ characterised by rapid, unregulated urbanisation; high levels of inequality, unemployment, and violence; poor access to key services; and exposure to climate threats — mean that Goal 16 must be addressed at the subnational level.

In this context, one possible approach to accelerate the pace of implementation is to link national and local-level policies, providing greater support to subnational governance institutions. Local and regional governments in many countries have already recognised this, arguing that new institutional arrangements and channels of coordination need to underpin more effective, accountable, and transparent institutions, as well as more responsive, inclusive, participatory, and representative decision-making. This is necessary for local governments to become more responsive to their communities, and for states to deliver on Goal 16.

Positive initiatives are currently underway that illustrate how this is happening. New forms of participatory decision-making such as in budgeting and in enhancements to city housing, service delivery, and slum conditions have led to improvements in public security and urban safety. Local governments have been working internationally and nationally to share relevant information and innovative, frequently data-driven, solutions.

The challenge will be linking these subnational priorities with national strategies. For example, Canada’s progress in implementing its Federal Sustainable Development Strategy 2016–2019, which focuses on the environmental aspects of the SDGs, does not sufficiently account for Goal 16, even though one of the aims of the strategy is to build safe, secure, and sustainable communities. However, at the regional level, many strategies overlap with the SDGs without specifically mentioning them focusing on employment, education, and environmental concerns, but less commonly on violence and justice.

Targets

16.1 Significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere.

16.2 End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children.

16.3 Promote the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensure equal access to justice for all 

16.4 By 2030, significantly reduce illicit financial and arms flows, strengthen the recovery and return of stolen

assets and combat all forms of organized crime.

16.5 Substantially reduce corruption and bribery in all their forms.

16.6 Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels  

16.7 Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels 

16.8 Broaden and strengthen the participation of developing countries in the institutions of global governance 

16.9 By 2030, provide legal identity for all, including birth registration 

16.10 Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national

legislation and international agreements

16.a Strengthen relevant national institutions, including through international cooperation, for building capacity

at all levels, in particular in developing countries, to prevent violence and combat terrorism and crime  

16.b Promote and enforce non-discriminatory laws and policies for sustainable development 

Achieving implementation of Goal 16 is a daunting task globally, for poorer countries in particular. The plethora of targets and indicators aiming to guide them tends to create white noise. Some countries have been felt disempowered by the ambition and wide spectrum of the 2030 Agenda, as much as they have been able to harness its potential for energising society. This has represented an obvious downside in practice to the United Nations’ otherwise admirable effort to design an all-encompassing agenda.

National governments will get to showcase their achievements at the United Nations High Level Political Forum, which is reviewing Goal 16 in 2019. Until then, greater effort is required nearly everywhere to achieve implementation of national policies towards this goal. Improved links between the national and subnational levels will move us all in the right direction.

How can a country develop how can people eat and teach and learn and work and raise families without peace? And how can a country have peace without justice, without human rights, without government based on the rule of law? Some parts of the world enjoy relative peace and justice, and may come to take it for granted. Other parts seem to be plagued by armed conflict, crime, torture and exploitation, all of which hinders their development. 

The goal of peace and justice is one for all countries to strive towards. The Sustainable Development Goals aim to reduce all forms of violence and propose that governments and communities find lasting solutions to conflict and insecurity. That means strengthening the rule of law, reducing the flow of illegitimate arms, and bringing developing countries more into the center of institutions of global governance. Promoting peace and justice is one of 17 Global Goals that make up the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. An integrated approach is crucial for progress across the multiple goals.

Libraries support this goal by providing information about…...

1. Public access to information about government, civil society, and other institutions. 

2. Training in skills needed to understand and use this information.

3. Inclusive, politically neutral spaces for people to meet and organize. 

Although SDG 16, as is the case with all of the goals, is not legally binding, there is an expectation that governments adopt the goals and incorporate them into their national frameworks. The SDGs are not there to prescribe national policies but to act as a compass that coordinates national efforts. The Addis Ababa Action Agenda is providing the financial support for these global efforts, strengthening the Financing for Development follow-up process that came out of the Monterrey Consensus and the Doha Declaration last decade. Features of the Addis Ababa Agenda that are especially relevant to SDG 16 are the recognition of the value of the Peacebuilding Fund, which was founded in 2006 and seeks to prevent countries from relapsing into violent conflicts.

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