ADA co-organised this event with Forus and other partners. Speakers came from a wide range of civil society organizations, all of whom emphasized the need for coalition action at all levels. Through different national and regional contexts, participants gave examples of effective and even innovative partnerships, but also presented the limits and future challenges in this area. Indeed, some institutions are still reluctant to put in place concerted decision-making mechanisms, a trend that has been accentuated by the pandemic.
The event was moderated by ADA Chair, Mr. Hideki Wakabayshi from JANIC, Japan.
Participants included John Romano (TAP Network), Ingo Ritz (SDG Watch Europe/Global Call to Action against Poverty), Dr. Gulshan Sachdeva (Centre for European Studies), Dr. Sabyasachi Saha (Research and Information System for Developing Countries India), Dr. Denison Jayasooria (CSO SDG Alliance), Priya Sood (Global Alliance on Reporting on Progress on SDG 16+), Artemy Izmestiev (UNDP) and Hideki Wakabayashi (JANIC - Japan NGO Centre).
John Romano presented the TAP network's campaign to bring together broad coalitions of partners to compare experiences around SDG implementation. A survey was shared, the results of which will be available this month, and will identify opportunities to lobby governments for greater accountability. More information is available on the TAP website: https://tapnetwork2030.org/.
 Ingo Ritz presented the SDG Watch Europe network, which aims to bring together national and regional CSO coalitions working on a variety of themes: social, environmental, development, women's rights and human rights. The network focuses its actions on advocacy and monitoring of the objectives, mainly with the European institutions. One of the current challenges is to ensure that the EU is as active in the implementation of the SDGs as it has been in their development, in order to turn words into deeds. More information: https://www.sdgwatcheurope.org/
Dr.Gulshan Sachdeva then presented the Indian experience of partnerships with civil society. Indeed, India has a long experience in this regard, from recipient of international aid to donor for Africa and Southeast Asia. With its 2 million CSOs, India can bring significant expertise to South-South cooperation. However, restrictive national regulations in this regard, which make CSOs service providers to fill state gaps, prevent Indian CSOs from developing internationally.
Dr.Sabyasachi Saha then presented the possibilities for partnerships between academia, think tanks and civil society. This type of alliance can lead to the production and sharing of knowledge on human rights, democracy, and social development indicators. However, to produce satisfactory results, these alliances must take into account the voices of the disenfranchised and include the private sector. In this regard, science and new communication technologies play a key role.
Dr.Denison Jayasooria then presented the Malaysian context, where broad partnerships exist between CSOs, government officials and local communities. 10 projects have been piloted by parliamentarians in order to collect information on the ground and thus establish priorities for implementing SDOs at the local level. One of the major challenges at this stage is the reluctance of some public actors to adopt a human rights-based approach and to work in partnerships.
Priya Sood stressed the importance of Goal 16 in order to implement the other goals. In this implementation, the VNRs play a fundamental monitoring role, and are all the more effective when they are part of a national plan that includes various actors: state, private, associative. The current context underlines the importance of Goal 16, both as a condition and as a consequence of development. Artemy Izmestiev then testified from the South Korean context, where CSO participation in international fora has long been strong. As a result, innovative methods have been developed to consolidate these partnerships, such as bringing officials and activists together, training CSOs in knowledge sharing, and engaging national civil society in South-South cooperation.
Hideki Wakabayashi closed the interventions by addressing the link between human rights and the private sector. He recalled that the issue of corporate social responsibility is framed by fundamental principles established by the UN, which obliges states to develop national plans in this area. Each SDG corresponds to a human right, and SDGs 8, 9, 12, 13, and 17 make a direct link between the private sector and human rights. The SDGs can, therefore, be seen as an opportunity for the private sector to improve its treatment of social issues in the workplace.