ACTRAV-TUDCN Seminar in Paris on the role for Trade Unions in the follow-up and implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda

The ILO Bureau for Workers’ Activities (ACTRAV) and the Trade Union Development Cooperation Network (TUDCN) organised a joint seminar in Paris on 12-13 December, on the role for Trade Unions in the follow-up and implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda, with ITUC affiliates from Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia-Pacific, and the Global Union Federations (GUFs).

With the 2030 Agenda now adopted, the focus turns to the implementation and monitoring. While the general framework for monitoring has been included in the 2030 Agenda, the specifics as to what will be monitored are still under negotiation through an UN Inter-Agency Expert Group and the UN Statistics Commission. With this process still underway with an expected agreement on the indicators package to be reached at the next UN Statistics Commission in March/April 2016, trade unions still have a capacity to shape and further influence the 2030 Agenda. The importance of the indicators’ framework cannot be understated. As the saying goes, “what gets measured gets done”. Very concrete efforts, especially through national trade union centres with their government counterparts, should go a long way in ensuring an indicators’ package, which upholds the ambition in the agreed set of SDG goals and targets.

The 2030 Agenda made a valuable recognition that governments alone will not be able to implement such an ambitious agenda and that all actors in society at all levels –global, regional, national and local– will need to contribute to it. It is therefore critical to engage trade unions on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. It is also crucial to start strategizing on how we can grant trade unions the voice and influence necessary to put the 2030 Agenda into practice, as well as ensuring that the ambition in the goals and targets is materialised at all levels (global, regional and specifically at national level).

A report of the meeting will follow.

You can find background documents and presentations here.